I-57 to be widened between I-64 and I-24

[Revive 755]

http://www.bentoneveningnews.com/news/x1090831594/FREDCO-members-receive-update-on-Interstate-57-widening-project

[Added post icon. -S.]

[froggie]

Lots of fluff in that article, and some very dangerous assumptions on the part of the economic development folks.

Took a look at IDOT's traffic numbers.  Looks like that stretch of I-57 averages low 30s for overall traffic, and about 10K for trucks.  That's a good bit of trucks, comparable to I-10 across the Gulf Coast or I-40 across Tennessee, but not a high overall traffic level.  And neither number compares to the slog that is I-81 through Virginia, so the claim from the article that I-57 "might be the busiest section of rural interstate in the United States" is bunk.

I could see 6-laning the I-57/64 duplex.  But I'm not so sure about the need further south towards I-24.

[Brandon]

Not too happy about this.  I-57 is a rural freeway downstate that carries only a fraction of what is seen around Chicagoland.  IDiOT would be better to put that money into widening I-80 first (which is a far busier rural freeway than I-57).

[Revive 755]

Not sure I quite agree with rural, maybe semi-rural, but I would agree with I-80 being a better candidate for widening - or for IDOT to start work on an Illinana bypass for I-80.  Course I'm biased so I'd rather see I-24 be extended to a more useful terminus.

Populations along I-57 according to the 2000 census via Wikipedia:

Benton:  6880
West Frankfort:  12,949
Marion:  17,282 (micro area population of 63,617)
Herrin (Not on I-57 but fairly close):  11,835

Traffic volumes look close to those on I-70 across Missouri (but since IDOT can't have a more cooperative ADT map like Missouri, I can't look at most of the corridor today).

[Chris]

While that section of I-57 is the busiest outside Chicagoland, it's still very low, about 30,000 AADT. four-lane freeways can easily handle double that, and I even know of 4-lane freeways that carry over 100,000 AADT (not that that's something to desire, but it's possible).

I agree with Brandon here, putting tax dollars into road improvement would serve much more people in the Chicagoland area. However, I guess the widening can be very cheap, as such roads generally have a wide ROW in the median to support a third lane.

Traffic volumes look close to those on I-70 across Missouri (but since IDOT can't have a more cooperative ADT map like Missouri, I can't look at most of the corridor today).

Aside from their interactive map, which is indeed horrible, IDOT also publishes PDF files, check here

[3467]

http://edocket.access.gpo.gov/2010/2010-2044.htm


The above s for Illinois 29 from Peoria to 80
I happen to think shared 4s would work just fine for most of the downstate arterials

As to 6 lanes IDOT wants to make 74 six near Champaign. 55 is near Springfield and its 30,000 as is 80 in Iowa 90/94 in WI and 65 in IN

[froggie]

False comparisons.  Where 90/94 in Wisconsin is 6 lanes never drops below 46K ADT, with much of it being over 60K.  The main places in Iowa where IaDOT wants to widen 80...Council Bluffs and Iowa City...are around 75K and 50K ADT respectively.  Much more traffic than the Illinois location comparisons.

[3467]

Yes they are busier.80 in Iowa is 30,000 in most of eastern Iowa and there are no planes for 6 lanes except in the Iowa City area. I think we agree there isnt really a need to widen 57 .
I should add there is no funding in IDOTs 5 year plan for this.
There is however money to study 74 near Mahomet even though no one has even asked for it

[froggie]

Okay, I wasn't sure where you were going with your previous post...

[leifvanderwall]

I have not been on the stretch of highway of I-57 for many years, but it kind of makes sense if there is more traffic coming from Nashville, TN to St Louis,MO during the summer season.

[lamsalfl]

Wow.  I don't have a horse in the race, but there are PLENTY of rural Interstates around the country with 30k. I don't know anything about the stats but 10k trucks seems like a lot.  That's 417 trucks an hour assuming they were even all day and they weren't. 

[corco]

I'd guess this is more about throwing a bone to the folks in southern Illinois, who are frequently disgruntled by the perception of all their tax dollars going to Chicagoland, then actual logic.

[lamsalfl]

I'd guess this is more about throwing a bone to the folks in southern Illinois, who are frequently disgruntled by the perception of all their tax dollars going to Chicagoland, then actual logic.

We have the same problem in Louisiana.  North LA (which has few cultural ties to South Louisiana) complains about a lot of tax dollars being spent down here.  Guess what?  75% of Louisiana lives below 31 north!  I'd imagine Chicagoans are saying the same thing that they are the ones paying the taxes for the state so they should get their rightful proportional share.

[3467]

It is mostly subrbanites that complain about the funding formula Downstate and the City are satsified with it Dwonstate gets about 60 percent of the money -We have the most road milage the Chicago area gets 40 PLUS transit money. Its suburbs with not a lotransitand tollroads that are least happy -Yet its those areas that are the most NIMBY on any new project
There is disagreemnet downstate about priorites however. A 6 laning of 74 in Champaign county was canceled and funding redirected

[golden eagle]

It would be wiser to widen I-57 through southern Cook, Will and Kankakee counties as expansion of the south suburbs continue. Every time I'm in the area, I see more new homes and businesses being built (which generates more traffic) and if a third Chicago airport is built near Peotone, there will be no choice but to widen.

[Revive 755]

IDOT has a website up for the I-57 widening project, with a brief power point presentation:
http://www.dot.state.il.us/i57/index.html

Sound like the widening could include the multiplex with I-64.

[kharvey10]

Being familiar with this area, I can tell you the fact IDOT been building up bridges on 57 on this section for the past 10 years.  Neither north-south alternate to 57, IL 37 and IL 148, can't handle any additional traffic if something bad happens to 57 on that section.  (Someone posted a youtube video of a 3 mile long backup on IL 148 following a July 2010 accident that shut the interstate down for hours.) There has been several major interstate-closing accidents on that section of 57 in the past 10 years and that includes a train derailment on the railroad overpass over 57 in Benton and multiple fatal accidents (with quite a few in construction zones to boot).  Back in 2004, IDiOT had to maintain 2 lanes in each direction traffic between Mt. Vernon and Benton for bridge work on that section of 57 that had construction.  It gotten so bad that even the St. Louis TV news media has made past fatal accidents on that section of 57 as their top stories in the past, even though that section of 57 is on the outlying area of their viewing area.

The AADT in Mt. Vernon is pushing 50k vehicles per day, and Mt. Vernon is quickly transforming into "Fairview Heights East" with a big development boom that led IDiOT in building that new interchange because you couldn't get around town on Broadway (IL 15).  There is a new hospital being built over there, and Marion built a new hospital near the corridor about 5 years ago.  IDiOT also has recently announced plans of arevamped 57-13 interchange in Marion.

[ShawnP]

Last trip thru Mount Vernon in August. I was shocked how bad in shape I-57 is thru that area.

[SSF]

Last trip thru Mount Vernon in August. I was shocked how bad in shape I-57 is thru that area.

Shawn-it's been that bad for a while now.  I am excited to see the widening, as that is the only busy stretch of 57 in that area. 

[kharvey10]

signs NB at the new exit in clearview

wide bridge over IL 148 in Mt. Vernon

[kharvey10]

IDOT has set a date of 2013 by the time they widen I-57 in Mt. Vernon according to the Mt. Vernon Register News

http://register-news.com/local/x135629895/Interstate-57-expanding-to-six-lanes

I also drove down that entire corridor, and IDOT is building up some bridges near West Frankfort.  Several bridges have been built up though there are several more to go.

[kharvey10]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DMY8TXYpBP8

Here is a video I filmed on that section in question (sorry for that glare)

[kharvey10]

this morning there was another TT crash that shut down I-57 for hours in West Frankfort near that construction zone that has a past history of bad accidents

http://www.kfvs12.com/Global/story.asp?S=14039527

[kharvey10]

http://www.dot.state.il.us/I57-IL13/index.html

Brand new stuff from IDOT regarding to the interchange with IL 13 in Marion

IDOT also got I-57 restricted south of Mt. Vernon that is causing long delays during the daytime hours for a bridge project (another one they are beefing up).  They're trying to get as much work done quickly because the bridge is near Rend Lake College and that college is in its summer semester session that gets much fewer students than the fall or spring semesters.  I will have to go through there at least twice in the next 2 weeks.

[Alex]

http://www.dot.state.il.us/I57-IL13/index.html

Brand new stuff from IDOT regarding to the interchange with IL 13 in Marion

IDOT also got I-57 restricted south of Mt. Vernon that is causing long delays during the daytime hours for a bridge project (another one they are beefing up).  They're trying to get as much work done quickly because the bridge is near Rend Lake College and that college is in its summer semester session that gets much fewer students than the fall or spring semesters.  I will have to go through there at least twice in the next 2 weeks.

We used "Alternate A" to avoid that last week. Construction VMS touted "major delays ahead", and you could see the non-moving traffic beyond the I-57/64 southbound split. "Alternate A" follows Illinois 37 south to Illinois 154 west. We opted for all of that, though after the first exit, I-57 southbound appeared to be moving. Several truckers and a couple of other cars were using IL-37 to do the same thing. Definitely worked out better.

What I did not get was a random back up along Interstate 64, east of the split with US 50. We came to a complete stop, for nothing that seemed abnormal. There was a large burn pile by a barn to the south, and maybe that is what everyone stopped to see? Anyway, during one stoppage, Interstate 64 east looked more like a railroad line with freight cars lined up than a freeway. An insane amount of trucks!