ROCHELLE — An I-Pass not only saves time while driving through Illinois Tolls, but will also save a motorist 50 percent of the cash toll price.
Starting Jan. 1, 2018, the Illinois Tollway requires every vehicle to have an I-Pass transponder in the window when going through toll booths. Previously a family with multiple vehicles could share one transponder and the tolls cameras would register the license plate charging the vehicle the discounted toll rate. I-Pass users are charged half of the cash rate at each toll.
According to the Illinois Tollway, “After five video tolls on a single license plate in one month, you will lose the I-PASS discount on tolls for that license plate, and any subsequent video tolls to that plate will post at the full cash rate for the remainder of the month.”

Families and businesses may continue to share an account with “shared balance” but each car will need to have a transponder in place when driving through the toll.
On a shared balance, each transponder draws from a single prepaid account balance. Each vehicle must be registered to the I-Pass account and have a transponder in the window when driving through the toll.
Transponders may be purchased in person at the Rochelle Road Ranger on Highway 38 or in DeKalb at the DeKalb Oasis and Jewel-Osco stores. Transponders purchased at Jewel-Osco and Road Ranger are preloaded with $20 in tolls and a $2.90 service fee is charged per transponder.  I-Pass transponders may also be purchased online at Illinoistollway.com, via phone at 1-800-824-7277 or by mail.
An I-Pass transponder requires a $10 deposit and an additional $20 for the account balance. Credit/ debit card information, personal information of account holder, driver’s license number, license plate number and type and vehicle make/model/ year is required when signing up for a transponder.
The transponder should be mounted to the front window to the left of the rear-view mirror with the I-Pass label facing the driver. I-Pass allows drivers to automatically pay toll while driving, eliminating idle time, excessive breaking and the need to stop at toll plazas. While passing through an open toll a small radio-frequency is sent to the I-Pass transponder the triggers the deduction of toll from the registered account.
I-Pass is accepted on all toll lanes in Illinois, Chicago Skyway, Indiana Toll Road and in 15 other states via the E-ZPass system.