Border war erupts over Indiana toll discount

April 13, 2007

BY KEITH BENMAN,  The Times

A bone thrown to northern Indiana legislators during the dogfight over privatization of the Indiana Toll Road has become a bone of contention between Illinois and the Toll Road's private operator.

The Illinois Tollway authority is protesting the fact that users of I-Pass transponders will not get a discount on the Indiana Toll Road, while users of Indiana Toll Road transponders, called I-Zoom, will get a discount when using the Illinois Tollway.

"The Illinois Tollway has never drawn a line between its residents and drivers who live in Indiana and travel in Illinois for daily commutes or leisure trips," Illinois Tollway Executive Director Brian McPartlin said.

The Illinois Tollway authority says 90,000 I-Pass transponders are owned by Indiana drivers who save $9 million in tolls annually.

Toll Road operator ITR Concession Co. plans to start selling I-Zoom transponders in May. Those who purchase them for use in cars and on motorcycles will get a 40 percent discount on Indiana Toll Road tolls. Trucks don't get the discount.

Cars also can use I-Zoom to get the 50 percent discount I-Pass users now get on the Illinois Tollway.

But it won't work the other way around. I-Pass users will have to pay the same as those who pay with cash on the Indiana Toll Road. Those tolls are slated to increase from 72 percent to 119 percent, depending on the trip.

The Toll Road discount was put in place because northern Indiana legislators during the privatization debate last year complained their constituents would be hit hardest by toll increases. But it was done after ITR Concession's parent company already had made its blockbuster $3.8 billion bid for the road.

So the state is now on the hook to pay ITR Concession an estimated $278 million out of bid proceeds to keep the toll discount in place through 2016.

ITR Concession spokesman Matthew Pierce pointed to that political deal as the cause of the current brouhaha. He said ITR Concession will begin talking with both the state of Indiana and the Illinois Tollway authority to address Illinois' concerns.

"They are highlighting the overall issue of 'gee, is this fair,' but we have to make sure we perform our overall duty of communicating with our customers," Pierce said.

Basically, that boils down to which transponder to get, Pierce said.

"We never want to introduce the idea of using two transponders," Pierce said. "If you drive mainly on the Indiana Toll Road you should get a transponder from Indiana."

The transponders will be available starting at $10 on May 15. They can be ordered both at the ITR Concession's Web site and by a toll-free number still to be established, Pierce said.

ITR Concession has the right to collect tolls on the Toll Road through 2081.

The Illinois Tollway authority indicated it is ready to fight tooth-and-nail for its drivers and those from other states using E-ZPass transponders.

McPartlin pointed out that once the Indiana Toll road has electronic tolling in place, drivers will be able to use one transponder from the East Coast to the Midwest -- except if they want the discount on the Indiana Toll Road.

The Illinois Tollway authority will consider making I-Zoom users ineligible for electronic tolling discounts in Illinois if ITR Concession does not allow I-Pass users a discount in Indiana, McPartlin said.

He pointed out that if I-Pass users also have I-Zoom transponders in their cars, they stand a good chance of being billed twice.

In a letter to ITR Concession Chief Executive Officer Fernando Redondo, McPartlin says ITR may in fact be violating Indiana law in discriminating against I-Pass users.

The Illinois Tollway authority also is raising the issue with the E-ZPass Interagency Group, which coordinates the use of E-ZPass on interstate toll roads and recently accepted ITR Concessions as a member.