Governor Ryan Unveils $2.3 Billion Highway Program For Fiscal Year 2002

QUINCY -- Governor George H. Ryan today unveiled a comprehensive highway improvement program, continuing a record pace in the delivery of Illinois FIRST road and bridge improvements.

Ryan released a detailed list of $2.3 billion in road improvements for Fiscal Year 2002 to repair and construct new roads, ease congestion and improve safety.

"We have been able to maintain a record program for the second year in a row-enabling us to address hundreds of critical road and bridge projects," Governor Ryan said. "The FY 2000 program was fully accomplished and we are on track for the same level of accomplishment this year.

"The reconstruction of the Hillside Bottleneck will be completed this fall and will relieve constant traffic congestion on the Eisenhower Expressway. Another example of a project to ease congestion is the addition of lanes on Illinois 59 from 111th Street in Naperville to 143rd Street in Plainfield. That project will be completed this fall."

The FY 2002 projects are part of a proposed $10 billion highway construction and repair program for FY 2002 to FY 2006. The proposed multi-year initiative continues the focus on repairing and rehabilitating the existing network of roads and bridges.

"The five-year program I am announcing today will improve more than 4,100 miles of road, and replace or rehabilitate more than 1,000 bridges," added Governor Ryan. "The goal is to ensure that 85 percent of the state's roads will be in good to excellent condition at the end of Fiscal Year 2006."

The proposed five-year program is financed with $5.8 billion in state funds, $3.9 billion in federal funds, and local governments will contribute $300 million in matching funds.

Over the five years the road program will allocate $325 million to help cities, counties and townships improve local roads and bridges under their jurisdiction. This includes such programs as $50 million for Needy Townships to assist those units of government with the lowest ability to generate revenue, $75 million for the Township Bridge Program, $35 million for upgrading local truck routes, and $16 million to local communities for highway access improvements to foster economic development by either attracting new jobs or retaining existing jobs. In addition, these governments will receive an average of $640 million annually in state motor fuel tax revenues.

Major projects in the FY 2002-2006 program include:

Northeastern Illinois

• Interstate 55 at Arsenal Road.
  Interchange reconstruction, bridge replacement, land acquisition and engineering are programmed during FY 2003-2006 at a cost of $31.4 million. This work is being done in conjunction with the development of the Joliet Arsenal facility which, when completed, will be the largest railroad intermodal facility in the nation.

• Interstate 55 from Interstate 80 to Naperville Road.
  Engineering for reconstruction and additional lanes for 15 miles is programmed during FY 2002-2006 for $8.0 million. Currently, this four-lane interstate carries approximately 58,000 vehicles per day. Reconstruction and additional lanes are estimated to cost $150 million and is unfunded in the FY 2002-2006 program.

• Interstate 80 (Borman Expressway) from Interstate 94 (Bishop Ford Expressway) to Indiana State line.
  Construction of additional lanes for 3 miles, reconstruction, bridge replacement, interchange reconstruction and engineering are programmed during FY 2002-2006 at a cost of $366.9 million. Of this total, engineering for contract plans are programmed in FY 2002 at a cost of $5 million.

• Interstate 94/90 (Dan Ryan Expressway) from 31st Street to Interstate 57.
  Reconstruction of 9.2 miles of the existing local and express lanes and engineering are programmed during FY 2002-2006 at a cost of $545 million. Of this total, $9 million is programmed in FY 2002 to initiate Phase II engineering for contract plans on the express lanes from 31st Street to 67th Street.

• US 20 from west of Addison Road to Walnut Street.
  Reconstruction for 2.2 miles, bi-directional left turn lane, bridge rehabilitation, land acquisition, engineering for contract plans, signal timing/progression and lighting are programmed in FY 2002 at a cost of $20.9 million.

• US 30/Illinois 83 (Lincoln Highway) from Illinois 394 to north of Sauk Trail.
  Reconstruction for 3.2 miles, bridge replacement, intersection improvement, railroad crossing improvement and engineering for contract plans is programmed during FY 2002-2006 at a cost of $17.2 million. Of this total, $783,000 is included in FY 2002 for land acquisition and engineering for contract plans.

• US 41 (Lake Shore Drive) from I-55 (Stevenson Expressway) to 67th Street.
  Reconstruction for 6.1 miles, bridge replacement, pedestrian underpass, median barrier, pump station, landscape rehabilitation, drainage, and lighting are programmed during FY 2002-2006 at a cost of $82.2 million. TEA-21 provided $6 million of High Priority Project funds for this project.

• Illinois 22 (Lake Zurich Road) from US 14 (Northwest Highway) to Quentin Road.
  Additional lanes for 7.6 miles, bridge replacement, new bridge, engineering for design and location studies and contract plans, land acquisition, tree removal and lighting are programmed during FY 2002-2006 at a cost of $66.6 million. Of this total, $1.5 million is included in FY 2002 for engineering for design and location studies and contract plans.

• Illinois 22 (Lake Zurich Road) from Quentin Road to west of Illinois 83 (Mundelein Road) .
  Additional lanes for 3.5 miles, railroad crossing improvement, land acquisition, engineering for right-of-way, and engineering for contract plans are programmed during FY 2002-2006 at a cost of $20 million. Of this total, $700,000 is included in FY 2002 for engineering for contract plans.

• Illinois 22 (Half Day Road) from east of Illinois 83 in Long Grove to US 41 (Skokie Highway) in Highland Park.
  Additional lanes for 8.1 miles, bridge replacement, land acquisition, engineering for design and location studies and contract plans and curb and gutter are programmed during FY 2002-2006 at a cost of $77.8 million. Of this total, $9.4 million is included in FY 2002 for engineering for design and location studies and contract plans and land acquisition.

• Illinois 58/72 (Golf Road/Higgins Road) from west of Moon Lake Road to Roselle Road and west of Fairmont Road to Roselle Road.
  This is referred to as the western portion of the "Schaumburg Triangle." Additional lanes for 4.6 miles, land acquisition, pedestrian underpass, landscaping and lighting are programmed in FY 2002 at a cost of $32 million.

• Algonquin Bypass from the north junction of Illinois 31 to the south junction of Illinois 31.
  New construction, engineering for contract plans and land acquisition are programmed during FY 2002-2006 at a cost of $38.2 million. Of this total, $12.4 million is included in FY 2002 for land acquisition. TEA-21 provided $9.2 million in High Priority Project funds for this project.

• Palatine Road from east of US 12 (Rand Road) to US 45/Illinois 21 (Milwaukee Avenue) .
  Reconstruction for 4.4 miles, bridge rehabilitation, culvert rehabilitation, land acquisition, median barrier, signal timing, drainage, and patching are programmed during FY 2002-2006 at a cost of $50.1 million. Of this total, $2.3 million is included in FY 2002 for engineering for contract plans and land acquisition. .

  Downstate Illinois

• Interstate 55/74 from South of Illinois 9 to Interstate 39 north of Normal.
  Reconstruction, construction of additional lanes on 5 miles, bridge widening, bridge replacement and reconstruction of the Illinois 9 interchange are programmed during FY 2003-2006 at a cost of $24.5 million. This includes the Cabintown Road bridge replacement south of Illinois 9 at a cost of $3.1 million. Construction engineering is programmed in FY 2002 at a cost of $1 million to continue implementation of this work. Nearly $24 million in work south of Illinois 9 is in progress. This program continues improvement of this route northerly to Interstate 39.

• Interstate 70 from the North Fork of the Embarras River in Clark County to the Indiana State line.
  Reconstruction of 21.3 miles of four-lane pavement and bridge work are programmed during FY 2002-2006 at a cost of $120.7 million. Of this total, $4.8 million is programmed in FY 2002 for engineering and pre-construction work that will expedite the reconstruction to follow. Also in this total, reconstruction from Illinois 1 to the Indiana State line is programmed in FY 2002 at a cost of $58.5 million.

• Interstate 74 from Interstate 474 west of Peoria to Pinecrest Drive in East Peoria.
  Interstate 74 through Peoria was constructed in the late 1950s to early 1960s and does not meet current Interstate standards. Complete reconstruction and modernization of 11 miles through Peoria is programmed during FY 2002-2006 at a cost of $369.3 million. The total estimated cost of the project is $388 million, the largest downstate interstate modernization project ever undertaken by Illinois. Location studies have been completed and design plans are under way. The FY 2002 program includes $49.4 million for engineering, land acquisition, utility adjustments and miscellaneous work.

• Interstate 80 from east of Morris to the Will County line. Reconstruction of the eastbound lanes for 7.6 miles, bridge replacement and reconstruction of the Minooka interchange are programmed during FY 2002-2006 at a cost of $37.6 million. Of this total, engineering for contract plans for the Minooka interchange is programmed in FY 2002 at a cost of $330,000. A contract award is pending for the reconstruction of the westbound lanes and $1 million is programmed in FY 2002 for construction engineering.

• US 20 from Galena to Freeport.
  Preliminary engineering at a cost of $5.7 million is under way to prepare a location and design report and an environmental impact statement for improving the existing 50 miles to four lanes. This engineering is anticipated to be completed in late 2001 with the EIS submittal to follow. The ISTEA in 1991 provided $2 million in federal demonstration funds for this study. In addition, the FY 1992 federal appropriation bill provided $2.1 million in other demonstration funds.

• US 20 from Illinois 84 (NW) to southeast of Galena (Galena Bypass) .
  Engineering for location studies is under way as part of the Galena to Freeport corridor. Engineering for contract plans and land acquisition for a useable section of the bypass are programmed during FY 2003-2006 at a cost of $6.7 million. Construction of the 7-mile bypass is not currently funded.

• US 20 - Freeport Bypass.
  Engineering for contract plans, an interchange at Illinois 75 and additional lanes for 6.1 miles of the Freeport Bypass from east of Illinois 26 to west of Springfield Road are programmed during FY 2002-2006 at a cost of $25.5 million. Of this total, engineering at a cost of $300,000 is programmed in FY 2002 to continue work on contract plans for the segment from east of Illinois 26 to east of Illinois 75.

• US 51 from 0.7 mile north of the Macon County Line to 0.9 mile south of Mowequa.
  Construction of additional lanes for 5.5 miles, bridge replacement and a new bridge are programmed during FY 2003-2006 at cost of $20 million. This project will extend the US 51 four-lane to 11.8 miles south of Elwin.

• US 136/Illinois 336 - Quincy to Macomb Corridor.
  A new four-lane highway from US 24 to Illinois 61 near Mendon was opened to traffic in 1996. Construction contracts are under way to continue the four lanes from near Mendon to north of Illinois 94. With this program, the 60 miles of four-lane highway from Quincy to Macomb will be fully funded. Construction to complete 35 miles from 1 mile north of Illinois 94 to Deere Road at Macomb is programmed during FY 2002-2006 at a cost of $183.9 million. The ISTEA in 1991 provided $4.9 million in federal demonstration funds and TEA-21 provided $3.8 million in High Priority Project funds for this project.

  Two construction projects are programmed in FY 2002 to complete 8.7 miles of four-lane pavement at two locations. Construction of 7.5 miles on new location from 1 mile north of Illinois 94 to 3 miles south of Carthage is programmed at a cost of $22.1 million. Construction of 1.2 miles of additional lanes from County Highway 18 west of Macomb to Deere Road is programmed at a cost of $5.8 million.

  Engineering for contract plans is programmed in FY 2002 at a cost of $2.8 million for the segment from south of Carthage to 2 miles east of Carthage and for the segment east of Illinois 61 to US 136 east of TR 266 near Macomb.

• Illinois 29 from Rochester to Taylorville.
  Construction projects and associated work totaling $40 million are programmed to complete 11.8 miles of new four-lane pavement on the total distance of 18.8 miles between Rochester and Taylorville. Engineering for contract plans is under way.

  New four-lane construction for 5.1 miles from Rochester to 2.1 miles north of the Christian County line is programmed during FY 2002-2006 at a total cost of $17.5 million. Of this total, land acquisition, archaeological survey and utility adjustments are programmed in FY 2002 at a cost of $1.3 million.

  New four-lane construction for 6.7 miles from south of Edinburg to south of Illinois 104 at Taylorville is programmed during FY 2002-2006 at a cost of $22.5 million. Of this total, land acquisition and archaeological survey are programmed in FY 2002 at a cost of $726,000.

• East St. Louis, Illinois and St. Louis, Missouri Central Business District (CBD) Bridge.
  Engineering for location, design and environmental studies for a new bridge connecting East St. Louis and the central business district in St. Louis, Missouri, is in progress with completion anticipated during 2001. This engineering was initiated in FY 1992 with Illinois as the lead agency and Missouri sharing in the costs. ISTEA included $2.3 million in federal demonstration funds for this project.

Land acquisition and engineering for contract plans are under way and continuation of this work, as well as other pre-construction work, are programmed during FY 2002-2006 at a cost of $39.3 million. Of that amount, work totaling $25.7 million is programmed in FY 2002. Missouri and Illinois are sharing engineering costs for contract plans. TEA-21 provided $542,000 in High Priority Project funds for Phase II engineering (contract plans).

The location of the new Mississippi River bridge is being coordinated with the relocation of Illinois 3 from Venice to Sauget/Cahokia and the Interstates 55/64/70 Tri-Level reconstruction in East St. Louis.