HR0016 103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR0016 LRB103 24803 MST 51133 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, According to a report by NBC 5 Chicago, as of September 30, 2021, a total of 185 expressway shootings happened in the Chicago region, more than double the 83 the area had seen by the same date the previous year, which is a 45% increase over the 128 shootings the region experienced in all of 2020; and

WHEREAS, By September 30, 2021, at least 85 people have been wounded in expressway shootings, and 16 have been killed; and

WHEREAS, According to the Illinois State Police, a very small percentage of expressway shootings in the Chicago area are cases of road rage; the shootings are opportunistic, where somebody has a problem with somebody else and they cross paths on the interstate; and

WHEREAS, One suggestion that has been put forth to deter crime on the Chicago expressways is to convert expressways into toll roads, but that idea may be illegal; the 1956 Interstate Highway Act generally bans tolling on interstates; and

WHEREAS, Throughout the years, Congress has authorized pilot programs under which states can start collecting tolls on existing interstates to fund improvements on those roads, but only for the purpose of road improvements; and

WHEREAS, The Dan Ryan Expressway I-57 is a high traffic expressway where numerous shootings have occurred, and a state tollway system could serve to reduce violence by making it more difficult for these opportunistic shootings to take place; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE HUNDRED THIRD GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we call on the U.S. Congress to authorize a policy change to allow existing interstates built with federal funding to become state tollways, enabling Illinois to convert the Dan Ryan Expressway I-57 into a toll road for the safety of its citizens; and be it further

RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be delivered to the President of the United States, the U.S. Senate Majority Leader, the U.S. Senate Minority Leader, the U.S. Speaker of the House, the U.S. House of Representatives Minority Leader, and all members of the Illinois Congressional Delegation.