Posted on May 9, 2025

Elkhart Proposes Toll Booths on County Roads

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Elkhart, IN — In a bold new strategy that locals are calling “peak government logic,” Elkhart County officials have proposed installing toll booths on major county roads, insisting it's the only practical way to fund repairs. Residents, already accustomed to dodging potholes the size of kiddie pools, are now left wondering why they're being asked to pay twice for the same crumbling asphalt. The proposal has sparked immediate backlash, turning routine council meetings into standing-room-only events filled with folded arms, stern looks, and muttered threats about "next election season."

County officials warn that without tolls, residents could face hikes in fuel taxes, vehicle registration fees, or even property taxes — a threat that feels less like a warning and more like a shakedown. “Nobody wants to pay more,” said one council member, while standing next to a road that looks like it lost a fight with a meteor shower. Locals argue they’re already paying every time they dodge a crater, register a vehicle, or get slapped with a surprise bump in their home value just for living near a Casey’s.

According to the proposal, toll booths would be installed on key county roads like CR 6 and CR 17 — two of the busiest stretches in the region. Additional booths may appear in so-called “high-impact zones,” though the criteria for those remain vague. The county claims the tolls will be “minimal,” just enough to cover road maintenance, booth operations, and somehow a $200,000 “community engagement study” to find out if tolls hurt anyone’s feelings.

When asked why they’re not fixing the roads with existing revenue, one official pointed to a laminated chart showing “funding gaps,” a term locals say is government-speak for “we blew the budget on something dumb again.” The chart also featured a suspicious number of pie graphs, none of which included actual pie.

Residents aren’t buying it. “My tires are already paying the price,” said one driver, who claims they’ve replaced two rims, three hubcaps, and most of their suspension since February. “They should be paying us to drive on these roads.”

Others are wondering how toll booths will work when most of the roads don’t even have working paint lines. “Are they gonna charge extra if I hit a pothole and take out the booth?” asked a delivery driver whose front-end alignment is held together by zip ties and hope.

The backlash has been swift. One local group, No Toll Trolls, has begun staging protests dressed as medieval tax collectors, complete with scrolls and signs that read “Ye Shall Not Pass (Without $2.50).” The group also launched a petition with over 5,000 signatures, and they’re reportedly planning to host a “Pothole Pride Parade” where each float represents a different section of destroyed roadway.

Meanwhile, Elkhart County’s official press release referred to the tolls as a “forward-thinking infrastructure partnership,” which residents interpreted as “we're broke and this sounded clever in a PowerPoint.” The same release promised “transparency and public input,” although most residents say the county has already made up its mind and is now just workshopping excuses.

“The last time I saw something this tone-deaf, it was my ex-husband’s garage band,” said one resident, who lives near CR 10 and now measures her commute in broken shocks. “We didn’t vote for toll roads. We didn’t even ask for toll roads. We asked for the giant hole outside Martin’s to stop swallowing shopping carts.”

Adding insult to infrastructure, the county’s initial concept renderings for the toll booths include digital license plate scanners, automatic billing systems, and, in one version, a small concession stand. “For what?” asked a confused resident at the last meeting. “Are we supposed to buy snacks while we wait to get extorted?”

One council member defended the plan by saying, “It’s how they do it in Europe.” He then added, “Their roads are nicer,” apparently forgetting that Elkhart is not Europe — and our toll money is more likely to vanish into a pothole than pave over one.

Locals aren’t taking it lightly. One man is reportedly developing an “underground road map” that allows drivers to bypass toll booths using a series of old farm trails, gravel lots, and one guy with a field who just shrugs a lot. “He said just don’t hit the chickens,” one driver told us.

Another resident asked if the toll booths would accept payment in pothole punch cards. “I’ve hit so many, I feel like I should be earning free miles by now,” she said.

“I used to drive for fun,” said a retired mechanic. “Now I drive like I’m dodging landmines. And they want me to pay for the privilege?”

A woman from the west side of the county added, “By the time they finish installing these booths, my shocks will be worth more than my car.”

Even a teenager chimed in: “They put one of those booths in front of the high school, and I’m jumping the curb like it’s BMX class. I already dodge cafeteria food — I can dodge a toll.””

And while the county insists all toll revenue will go toward fixing roads, they also admit that the toll booths themselves, along with software, maintenance contracts, enforcement, and other overhead, will have to be paid off first — meaning actual road repairs could be years (and millions) away.

With trust in local leadership already hanging by a thread — and that thread recently run over by a snow plow — it’s safe to say this toll booth proposal has turned a rocky road into a political minefield. Or maybe just a regular field. With a pothole in it.