Trenches of Democracy

When the Illinois State Toll Highway Authority (ISTHA) was established in 1941, Austin Wyman (the initial head of the organization) said the tolls would be eliminated by 1984 when outstanding bonds were paid off.

Instead, the Authority has done just the opposite, maturing into a self-perpetuating bureaucracy without any end in sight. It’s an excellent case study on the instinctive nature of bureaucracy; a testimony of self-preservation, growth, and government waste.

Historically, the tollway Authority served as an independent patronage empire with informal pay-to-play rules between private contractors. The headquarters in Downers Grove, formerly addressed “One Authority Drive,” is commonly referred to as the “Taj Mahal.” It’s a helipad-equipped facility with marble floors and Herman Miller Aeron executive desk chairs for all employees. In Illinois political culture, such excesses are used to communicate clout.

During the 90s, distinguished employees at ISTHA attracted the public’s attention. In 1992, John “Quarters” Boyle was sent to prison for stealing $4 million, mostly in quarters collected from tolls. He only repaid $720 and returned to prison in 2005 for involvement in Chicago’s more recent “Hired Truck” scandal. Later, in 1997, executive director Robert Hickman (coincidentally a talented Illinois campaign fundraiser) was convicted of fraud for $240,000 in a tollway real estate deal.

Needless to say, this glaring corruption generated public outcry to “Free the Tollway,” but politicians have offered little more than lip service.

On the campaign trail, Governor George Ryan promised to convert the tollways to freeways, but once in office, he replaced that concept with a less-intrusive cash cow, I-Pass (electronic tolling). And, of course, now Ryan is in prison, too.

To be continued…

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