92 Tollways n Autumn 2008 The Implementation of Open Road Tolling on the Illinois Tollway

By Paul Kovacs, P.E., and Sharif Abou-Sabh, P.E.

ome years ago, former Illinois governor George Ryan proposed, with much fanfare, the removal of tolls from the SIllinois Tollway system. Not long afterward, the Tribune and WGN-TV commissioned a major survey of the state to measure public support for the proposal. Contrary to expectations, the majority of survey participants were opposed to removing tolls and felt the Tollway provided “good value” to users (see the sidebar “Illinois Finds Value in Tollway”). When asked what their perceived biggest problem with tolling was, only 13 percent cited the cost of the toll, while 66 percent cited having to stop to pay tolls. It became clear that people didn’t want the tolls removed, they simply wanted the toll plazas removed.

Under current governor Rod Blagojevich, the Tollway (also known as the Illinois State Toll Highway Authority) embarked upon a multibillion-dollar congestion-relief program (CRP), called Open Roads for a Faster Future. The first priority was converting the Tollway’s 20 mainline toll plazas to nonstop high-speed collection areas for the 80 percent of Tollway patrons using I-PASS, the Illinois Tollway’s electronic toll collection system. This article discusses the unique challenges overcome in making the massive conversion as quickly as possible.

Asset Management 93 The ORT Initiative Delivering ORT lanes at 20 With a vision of providing nonstop plazas in less than two years required travel for commuters and getting drivers exceptional collaboration between to their destinations more quickly, the Illinois Tollway and the project’s the Illinois Tollway in 2005 began Program Management Office, and converting its 20 mainline toll plazas between those two entities and the to open road tolling (ORT). When multiple engineering and construction implementation was complete, in firms engaged in the CRP’s design and October 2006, Illinois became the first construction. Coordinated management state in the nation to convert all of its between the main players was key. mainline toll plazas to open road tolling just 22 months after the project began. Coordinated Management In so doing, it delivered quicker, easier, The Illinois Tollway’s engineers, under and safer travel for its 1.3 million the leadership of then–chief engineer daily drivers. Jeff Dailey and then–program manager Paul Kovacs, were tasked with imple- menting ORT as part of the CRP. With Delivering ORT lanes at Chicago-area drivers experiencing a 25 percent increase in congestion from 20 plazas in less than two 1998 to 2001, agency engineers began years required exceptional the ORT conversion with a sense of urgency to help reduce congestion, collaboration. improve mobility, and help strengthen the economic outlook in the 12 counties the Tollway serves. The ORT initiative is a major To help meet the aggressive part of the Tollway’s multiyear CRP, schedule of its capital program and which was designed to reduce travel ORT conversion, the Tollway added times by rebuilding and reconstructing engineering and planning firm HNTB most of the Tollway system. This work Corp. to its team as the PMO. This included widening and adding lanes collaboration was instrumental to the to nearly half the system, converting success of such a complex program. the mainline toll plazas to ORT within The HNTB Program Management the first two years of the program, and Office (PMO) is integrated within extending the North-South Tollway Tollway management, and includes (I-355) south through Will County subconsultants. By creating a unified to I-80. management team, the PMO is

94 Tollways n Autumn 2008 designed to leverage the expertise planning, design, and construction and and experience of a broad range recommended approaches throughout of professionals, extending the every phase of the conversion. The Tollway’s reach and augmenting its PMO also oversaw the ORT project’s technical resources. scope, schedule, and cost to ensure The PMO has become an that the Tollway obtained the most integrated member of the Tollway’s cost-effective solutions. Creativity was management team, serving as an encouraged among PMO members, extension of staff and providing which brought high-quality work and leadership, resources, and expertise additional value to the overall program. in key areas. In addition to assuming The PMO worked closely with a leadership role in the day-to- agency leadership in its work on the day management of the CRP and ORT conversion and focused on its component projects, the PMO activities necessary to achieve the evaluates project implementation and project objectives. Monthly reviews management mechanisms with the of all active projects were instituted objective of refining and improving the through “project book meetings.” manner in which projects are executed. These meetings, chaired by the PMO, As the manager of the CRP, provided a venue for early identifi- the PMO oversaw the ORT project cation of project schedule and budget

Illinois Finds Value in Tollway The poll conducted by the Chicago Tribune and WGN-TV earlier this decade showed overwhelmingly that motorists don’t mind paying for tolls as much as they mind having to stop for them. When asked what their perceived biggest problem with tolling was, only 13 percent cited the cost of the toll, while 66 percent cited having to stop to pay tolls. It became clear that people didn’t want the tolls removed; they simply wanted the toll plazas removed. But the survey also found that 58 percent of all survey participants consider tollways a good value for the money, and that 71 percent of users of I-PASS, Illinois’s electronic toll collection system, feel this way. Well more than a third (41 percent) of all Tribune/WGN poll respondents said they disapprove of former governor George Ryan’s plan to eliminate tolls on the Illinois Tollway, with more than half (54 percent) of regular Tollway users panning the proposal. When it comes to state fuel taxes, a full 74 percent of respondents oppose increasing the tax in an effort to turn the Tollway into a freeway, with only 16 percent favoring the idea. Today, as the Illinois Tollway found in its own, January 2006 survey, users of the Tollway’s new ORT system are echoing the positive attitudes of the Tribune/WGN poll respondents when it comes to the value of tolls.

Asset Management 95 challenges and allowed the quick devel- Designs were put out to bid as opment of alternative solutions to stay quickly as possible, with design details on schedule. The PMO also developed continuing to be developed during the a detailed ORT plan complete with bid period. The PMO team talked with objectives, scope-of-activity schedules, potential contractors during this period and staffing requirements. After the and used their questions and sugges- ORT conversion began, the PMO tions to refine the design plans. Prebid reviewed its progress against meetings were also held, to address established targets and provided regular questions and concerns before the project updates. bids were submitted. Keeping in mind the goal of A Balanced Schedule delivering the ORT lanes in two years, In delivering ORT, the PMO established the PMO streamlined the guidelines and followed a master schedule that and processes for construction sched- balanced numerous safety, operational, uling, in the process revamping the and public concerns and priorities. Tollway’s standard schedule specifica- The PMO also evaluated the Tollway’s tions. The new specifications require processes and procedures to identify contractors to continually assess the any challenges to project delivery and project status and submit monthly developed innovative solutions to schedules and critical-path reports. The eliminate those challenges. To help PMO required construction managers with its work, the PMO team to provide a detailed review of each enlisted toll-road experts from of these updates and offer options for around the country. correcting schedule delays to ensure that projects would be completed on time. Contractors were required to plan for adverse weather and justify any request for time extensions through an analysis of their construction plan. The schedule for converting the toll plazas to ORT was coordinated to keep as many I-PASS-only lanes open as possible during the changeover, so that customers could enjoy ORT’s benefits as soon as possible. (I-PASS has integration with the Interagency Group E-ZPass consortium. Currently,

96 Tollways n Autumn 2008 Conversion of the toll plazas to ORT was broken down into 24 design and construction engineering packages and 30 construction contracts. as noted above, 80 percent of Illinois Breaking Ground Tollway customers use I-PASS, among The designs for the 20 toll plazas were the highest electronic-usage rates in the divided among eight design firms, country.) ORT allows I-PASS users to which were charged with developing pay tolls electronically while traveling detailed plans. Each firm participated at highway speeds on the mainline. in design charrettes to discuss concepts Each plaza has as many ORT lanes as and alternatives. The charrettes there are mainline lanes leading into yielded several ideas for the new plazas, or exiting the plaza. Vehicles without including placing plaza operations I-PASS must keep to the right to above the plazas instead of in tunnels pay cash to toll collectors, located in below; having smaller control buildings smaller toll plazas, so as not to impede that would fit in the right-of-way; the free-flow of traffic on the mainline. and installing updated roadway signs The PMO revamped the master at the plazas. program schedule, which predicts Conversion of the toll plazas to obligations and cost projections, to ORT was broken down into 24 design include additional details required to and construction engineering packages manage the program. These included and 30 construction contracts. For tracking critical design milestones and the primary firms designing the ORT other project details that often cause plazas, the challenge was to balance the project delays and changes, such as need for consistency, and its resulting the timely attainment of rights-of-way, economies of scope and scale, with relocations of utility interferences, the unique requirements of each design checks, and collaboration with plaza location. outside agencies. The enhanced master During construction, the Tollway schedule allowed the team to quickly used a standard procedure for installing develop various resequencing scenarios automatic vehicle classification sensor for the program or for a particular loops in the ORT zones to ensure portion of a corridor as needed and consistency and quality. The agency helped executive management review worked with lane paving contractors to the impact of critical decisions. produce optimal pavement conditions

Asset Management 97 to ensure that the loops would operate accurately. In all of the ORT zones, the loops were cut into concrete, which is more durable than other roadway materials such as asphalt. (The concrete in the ORT zones is continuously reinforced with rebar, but care was taken to leave metal-free areas of concrete in which the rebar won’t interfere with the loops’ inductance capability.) to stick to the aggressive schedule and to remain within the budget. Such Staying on Budget, and on Time extensive contractor coordination and With construction pricing increasing outreach reduced project costs and substantially in recent years, the PMO encouraged a more competitive has worked to ease the effect on the bid environment. CRP. The team has actively commu- To help expedite the ORT nicated with the contracting industry conversion, the team advertised to promote contract opportunities and projects within the ORT program schedule bid advertisements. During prior to the completion of the the ORT conversion, the PMO held design documents, leading to more monthly meetings with members of construction changes than would the Illinois Road and Transportation normally be anticipated. Fortunately, Builders Association to review bid the PMO had anticipated these change schedules and asked other entities orders and set aside an adequate budget that were planning building projects to accommodate them. Change orders to supply their bid schedules so that amounted to an increase of approxi- the many projects throughout the mately 8.4 percent above the original Chicago area would not compete with contract award amount, which is still each other. The PMO also held the within the program budget of $730 aforementioned monthly project book million. This percentage was also meetings, which provided a forum well within the 10 percent of change in which all parties—contractors, orders anticipated. construction managers, designers, and Under the CRP, escalation rates others—could update the PMO and have been much higher than initially each other on their progress. This presumed. The original capital plan ongoing collaboration was necessary budget estimates were based on a

98 Tollways n Autumn 2008 The Tollway required that every part of the ORT project be infused with a commitment to the customer. That meant delivering benefits as quickly as possible while minimizing inconveniences for motorists.

4 percent escalation figure carried lane closures was performed at night through the program, based on January or during off-peak hours whenever 1, 2004, dollars. The budget, however, possible, and construction zones were has accommodated additional expen- limited to areas where active work ditures not originally anticipated for was under way. the CRP, including the cost of the The Illinois Tollway’s ORT system migration to electronic toll collection continues to exhibit a commitment to to integrate the latest technology and the customer post-construction, in its enhance toll collection; the cost of operation, by using one, centralized unanticipated ramp plaza work to align computer, known as a zone controller, ramp plazas with the mainline system; to handle all the lanes in a zone. This is and other ORT enhancements. an improvement over the older, express tolling model, which relied on several Commitment to Customers computers. In addition, ORT offers In addition to compressing the time better data handling with increased frame for completion of the ORT speeds and processing, the ability to conversion and working to contain increase the number of lanes in an ORT project costs, the Tollway required zone, and advanced software to better that every part of the ORT project handle and frame transactions. be infused with a commitment to The advent of ORT brought the the customer. That meant delivering early electronic tolling model to the benefits as quickly as possible next stage by eliminating the need for while minimizing inconveniences drivers to slow down to between 5 mph for motorists. and 25 mph in a designated electronic To minimize delays and maintain tolling lane. The new, ORT plazas traffic flow, the Tollway in all but provide mainline lanes in the middle one location kept the same number to allow nonstop travel for I-PASS of lanes open during construction as users, with tolls collected electronically was available prior to construction. via mounted on vehicle Construction that required additional windshields, bumpers, or roofs.

Asset Management 99 A Culture of Quality projects. As a result of higher than The PMO has led efforts for the anticipated construction inflation in Tollway to receive and maintain ISO 2006, all remaining projects in the certification through three successful CRP were re-estimated to determine audits, underscoring the culture of how the effects of the increased cost quality and continuous improvement of construction affected the CRP. The at the agency. (The Illinois Tollway is team used numerous cost escalation, the first tollway in the nation to receive scope, and scheduling scenarios to ISO certification and the only state- develop a menu of options for review level highway agency to receive it for by the Tollway’s executive management program management.) With a quality to set a new course for the CRP. This management system that conforms process will establish new goals for the to ISO 90001:2000 standards, the balance of the program and begin to Tollway ensures that all its processes develop the needs of the Tollway’s and services promote quality, safety, next capital program. reliability, and efficiency, and does so economically. As a result, the Tollway Total Team Effort conducts its efforts under the highest As related throughout this article, international standards for roadway the successful implementation of the planning, design, and construction. Illinois Tollway’s ORT system can Other CRP management efforts be attributed to the collaborative have included developing a geographic relationship between the agency’s information system (GIS) portal to leadership and the Tollway’s Program access, analyze, and manage important Management Office, a collaboration data needed for day-to-day opera- that fostered accountability and tions such as sharing maps, retrieving substantial business efficiencies. historical plans, tracking the status of The Tollway gained transportation rights-of-way acquisitions, and viewing efficiencies during the ORT conversion how projects impact and overlap with by separating the low-speed cash-paying other government jurisdictions. traffic from the high-speed ORT traffic, In coordination with the Tollway’s which now is in direct alignment with finance department, the PMO also has the Tollway’s mainline. In some cases, developed new, streamlined processes to ingress to and egress from the plaza allow CRP projects to be closed within were designed to parallel that of traffic 120 days of the project completion coming on and off the interchange date, thus allowing remaining funds to ramps. In addition, some plazas were become available to complete other relocated to a spot on the new right-of-

100 Tollways n Autumn 2008 The ORT plazas produced time-savings for motorists almost immediately.

way to enhance toll collection operations One-fourth (27 percent) said they and improve roadway performance. saved 15 minutes or more per trip, and Some of the key benefits the ORT an overwhelming majority (71 percent) conversion realized include: said their trips have improved as a result ■ Improved safety for motorists because of ORT. Toll processing has improved of the elimination of traffic backups from an average of 400 vehicles per and the separation of high- from hour in a staffed tollbooth to 2,300 low-speed traffic; vehicles per hour in an ORT lane. ■ Improved travel times due to the In addition to forced-response reduction of congestion and backups questions, the survey posed an open- at plazas; and ended question about whether ORT ■ Improved safety at plazas due to had made a difference in the quality reduced traffic volumes in the of life of Tollway customers. Many of cash lanes. the responses mentioned a reduction Additionally, the ORT plazas in hassles for travelers, increased safety, produced time-savings for motorists decreased road rage, and, above all, almost immediately, according to an savings in trip time. In an age when Illinois Tollway survey conducted in governmental agencies are often viewed January 2006. More than half (53 with skepticism by their constituents, percent) of those responding to the it is heartening to note that two-thirds survey said they saved up to 10 minutes of those completing the Tollway survey on a one-way trip thanks to ORT. offered positive responses.

Paul Kovacs, P.E., has 24 years of experience as a structural engineer, civil design engineer, surveyor, hydrologic/hydraulic engineer, and project manager. He is currently chief engineer for the Illinois Tollway. He may be reached at [email protected]. Sharif Abou-Sabh, P.E., has 30 years of diversified engineering experience in both the United States and abroad. He is with HNTB Corporation and is currently serving as program manager for the Illinois Tollway. He may be reached at [email protected].

Asset Management 101