Chicago Skyway

The Chicago Skyway Bridge is a 7.8-mile toll road built in 1958 to connect the Dan Ryan Expressway to the Indiana Toll Road. In 2002, the Chicago Skyway attracted a record 18.7 million motorists whose tolls amounted to $43 million dollars in revenue–twice the $21.5 million in tolls collected in 1993. In 2003, during the final phase of reconstruction, the Chicago Skyway served 17.4 million motorists who paid $39.7 million dollars in toll revenue. For almost 50 years, it was operated and maintained by the City of Chicago Department of Streets and Sanitation. In January 2005, the Skyway Concession Company, LLC (SCC) assumed operations on the Skyway with a 99 year operating lease that gave the City of Chicago a $1.83 billion dollar cash infusion. SCC is responsible for all operating and maintenance costs of the Skyway but has the right to all toll and concession revenue. This agreement between SCC and the City of Chicago was the first privatization of an existing toll road anywhere in the United States.