Illinois Tollway Wins 2019 Toll Excellence Award for Developing System to Handle Major Move Illinois Capital Campaign

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:  Monday, July 22, 2019

CONTACT: Bill Cramer, Communications Director

[email protected] or 202-210-2962 (mobile)

Illinois Tollway Selected for Toll Operations, Engineering and Maintenance Award for System Designed to Handle Increases in Volume and Complexity

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The International Bridge, Tunnel and Turnpike Association (IBTTA) today announced Illinois Tollway has been awarded the 2019 Toll Excellence Award for Toll Operations, Engineering and Maintenance for the development of a new back office system designed to handle significant growth over the life of the major, 15-year capital campaign, Move Illinois, including the Tollway’s first cashless roadways. 

The 2019 Toll Excellence Awards will formally be presented during IBTTA's 87th Annual Meeting and Exhibition, September 15-17, 2019 in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. One recipient will be honored with the prestigious President’s Award for Excellence during the awards ceremony.

“The Illinois Tollway’s ability to develop a system to handle such a major influx of volume and new complexities associated with the $14 billion Move Illinois capital campaign is an incredibly significant achievement for the transportation industry,” said Patrick Jones, Executive Director and CEO of IBTTA. “The Illinois Tollway has taken on a tough transportation challenge and worked with partners to find a practical solution. We’re incredibly proud of the work they’ve done to represent our industry. On behalf of the transportation community, we congratulate the Illinois Tollway on this well-deserved recognition.”

Jose Alvarez, Executive Director, Illinois Tollway, said in response to the award selection, “Our team took on the challenge of implementing a system that is common among Fortune 500 companies and major financial institutions, but rare in the open road tolling industry. We needed a flexible solution that prepared us for the future. This back-office solution has allowed us to enhance customer service, improve data security and adopt more complex processing systems.”

The International Bridge, Tunnel and Turnpike Association (IBTTA) is the worldwide association for the owners and operators of toll facilities and the businesses that serve tolling. Founded in 1932, IBTTA has members in 23 countries on six continents. Through advocacy, thought leadership and education, members are implementing state-of-the-art, innovative user-based transportation financing solutions to address the critical infrastructure challenges of the 21st Century.

Each year, IBTTA presents the Toll Excellence Awards to highlight the very best projects, innovations and solutions from the international tolling industry. The awards encourage the industry to share and celebrate new ideas and emerging practices in six categories: Administration and Finance; Customer Service and Marketing Outreach; Social Responsibility; Technology; Toll Operations, Engineering and Maintenance; and Private Sector Innovation.  You can view the full list of 2019 winners by visiting this link.

For more information about the awards, please contact Bill Cramer, Communications Director, IBTTA, [email protected]; 202.210.2962.

Background on the 2019 Toll Excellence Award for Toll Operations, Engineering and Maintenance

Illinois Tollway - Customer Relationship Management System

In 2012, the Illinois Tollway began a major capital program that would require a new Customer Relationship Management (CRM) System capable of handling the growth in revenues and toll transactions. The wider effort included the introduction of the Illinois Tollway's first cashless roads, its first cashless interstate-to-interstate interchange, and new cashless lanes along a 62-mile section between Chicago and Rockford, Illinois. From the time the capital program began the agency has been preparing for significant growth in volume and complexity of tolling operations, with transactions expected to increase by at least 45 percent and revenues by at least 50 percent through 2027. That jump in activity, will translate into a massive increase in back office requirements. To meet the challenge, the Tollway contracted with Accenture LLP for a new CRM system with updated business rules, customer self-service features, new and improved lane technologies, enhanced cybersecurity, and a wider range of external partners, including collection agencies, credit card companies, and other tolling agencies through interoperability agreements. The system now allows for more than $1.5 billion in toll and violation revenue, averaging 1.6 million users and 2.8 million toll transactions per day—more than 88 percent of them all-electronic via I-PASS or E-ZPass.

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About Move Illinois

The Illinois Tollway’s 15-year, $14 billion capital program, Move Illinois: The Illinois Tollway Driving the Future, is improving mobility, relieving congestion, reducing pollution, creating as many as 120,000 jobs and linking economies throughout the region. The first seven years of Move Illinois are on schedule and within budget, delivering the new Illinois Route 390 Tollway and a rebuilt and widened Jane Addams Memorial Tollway (I-90) with its new SmartRoad corridor, as well as opening a new interchange connecting the Tri-State Tollway (I-294) to I-57. Progress continues on projects addressing the remaining needs of the existing Tollway system, delivering the new I-490 Tollway Project and reconstruction of the Central Tri-State Tollway (I-294) and planning for emerging projects.

About the Illinois Tollway

The Illinois Tollway is a user-fee system that receives no state or federal funds for maintenance and operations. The agency maintains and operates 294 miles of roadways in 12 counties in Northern Illinois, including the Reagan Memorial Tollway (I-88), the Veterans Memorial Tollway (I-355), the Jane Addams Memorial Tollway (I-90), the Tri-State Tollway (I-94/I-294/I-80) and the Illinois Route 390 Tollway.

About IBTTA

The International Bridge, Tunnel and Turnpike Association (IBTTA) is the worldwide association for the owners and operators of toll facilities and the businesses that serve tolling. Founded in 1932, IBTTA has members in 23 countries on six continents. Through advocacy, thought leadership and education, members are implementing state-of-the-art, innovative user-based transportation financing solutions to address the critical infrastructure challenges of the 21st Century. For more information, please visit www.ibtta.org or join us on Twitter @IBTTA or #TollRoads.