If you think you can drive without a toll transponder in the state of Illinois and get away with it, think again.

That's the word coming down, as those who accrue "an excessive amount of tolls in a month" without using an I-PASS transponder will "be charged the cash toll rate" per NBC 5 Chicago starting on January 1, 2018.

The Illinois Tollway has not commented on how much is considered "excessive."

The message from the Illinois Tollway is that pretty much every car on the road should have its own I-PASS transponder, even if you have an account and share the device between different vehicles.

Here's why: vehicles that travel through toll plazas without am I-PASS transponder forces Illinois Tollway employees to use "video tolling  - which matches digital images of licenses plates" in order to take toll money out of an account.

NBC 5 Chicago says it costs the Illinois Tollway "about 23 cents per transaction, nearly three times more than processing transponder transactions."

If you have yet to purchase an I-PASS transponder or need to grab a second, the nearest in-person location is at the Belvidere Oasis on I-90.

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Sweet Lenny is the brand manager of 97ZOK and Operations Manager for Townsquare Media Rockford. Catch him afternoons 3 to 7 on 97ZOK. Follow him on TwitterInstagram and like his page on Facebook.

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