Quote from: Revive 755 on January 12, 2020, 11:48:19 AM
The report has been released for the 'Southwest Illinois Connector'. https://www.siconnector.com/ (https://www.siconnector.com/) The report has a map for previous studies, including one prior to the Supplemental Freeway corridor which would have used IL 13 and IL 15.
Kind of disappointing there's no mention in the report of getting a better bypasses for Waterloo or Columbia.
Reviewing this updated map for the first time I would have a few questions:
Why route through Pickneyville? Population, politics, the huge prison next door?
IL-127 for the N/S route instead of US-51 which is strategic (supposedly) for Illinois?
What happened the the IL-4 route to reach IL-13 and Murphysboro?
I could only conclude this is a local consensus for the route and the Environmental Assessment and prior work has been done from Pickneyville south. They are smart for that . They could actually get some construction done on that segment they may get that even if the other 49 miles never happen.
It does appear they want to get thru traffic away from the downtown Pickneyville square, which is helpful
That said, even if this route were to fully develop from Columbia to Murphysboro, I would probably still use IL 127 to I-64 to get to Downtown STL or to Lambert Field
Quote from: edwaleni on January 13, 2020, 04:18:54 PM
Reviewing this updated map for the first time I would have a few questions:
Why route through Pickneyville? Population, politics, the huge prison next door?
IL-127 for the N/S route instead of US-51 which is strategic (supposedly) for Illinois?
What happened the the IL-4 route to reach IL-13 and Murphysboro?
US 51 south of Salem is too close to I-57 to develop as a separate corridor. IL 127 is far enough away from I-57 that it is attractive for those west of I-57 to use that to go North to I-64 and the St Louis area instead of heading out of the way to I-57
The best/quickest (current) route up to Waterloo and Columbia involves using a bunch of County Rds to bypass Red Bud, Sparta, Steeleville, etc. That said, probably not that great on Safety, when using the County backroads to bypass towns...
Is there a reason this proposed highway does not connect to an Interstate highway at either end?
Quote from: ilpt4u on January 14, 2020, 07:55:11 AM
It does appear they want to get thru traffic away from the downtown Pickneyville square, which is helpful
While I understand Pinkneyville residents' opposition to a bypass, it astounds me that they have apparently considered the constant traffic headache at the square to be acceptable. If I lived there, I'd absolutely hate having to drive through the square on a regular basis, especially with all the truck traffic that navigates it.
Quote from: Konza on January 14, 2020, 11:56:33 AM
Is there a reason this proposed highway does not connect to an Interstate highway at either end?
IL 3 already is a Divided Rural Expressway feeding into I-255 north of Columbia, and IL 13 already is mostly 6 lane divided highway to Marion and I-57, with a few short sections still 4 lane between Murphysboro and Marion
To say it another way, the connecting highways to the Interstates are already there and built
A Fictional I-24 extension from Marion to Columbia is a Freeway version of this corridor
There are explanations in the old documents on their website that explain a direct extension is not viable because it would slice through the wildlife refuge.
A roundabout is funded now in Pickneyville. It's on the featured projects page too.
So a 4 lane expressway South of Pickneyville is still viable without the bypass.
Quote from: 3467 on January 14, 2020, 05:44:08 PM
There are explanations in the old documents on their website that explain a direct extension is not viable because it would slice through the wildlife refuge.
A roundabout is funded now in Pickneyville. It's on the featured projects page too.
So a 4 lane expressway South of Pickneyville is still viable without the bypass.
I find it kind of interesting that there is such desire to protect many of these nature areas, because most of these areas are former strip mines that have been in business in the area since the late 1800's. Southern Illinois coal used to fire the boilers to make the steel in Gary, Indiana and run the industry in Chicago. Now it just fires boilers for power companies that can still get high sulfur permits. And Illinois coal certainly has the sulfur.
I have some of the same questions about Pickneyville that I asked about the Lebanon Bypass. People say they don't like the trucks going through town, but they also don't like the loss of business in their downtowns when people are bypassed around them. Some states are trying to get around this by defining the bypass as a signed "Truck Route" when you know darn well that anyone in transit will don't bother to go into town if they don't have to.
I definitely agree that there has to be better connectivity between the Carbondale/Marion/West Frankfort MSA and the Metro East. But Illinois just spent $22 million on upgrading the airport with the promise that Allegiant Air would come back (they didn't). When I fly out of Belleville (Mid-America) on Allegiant half the passengers are from Marion. There is always plenty of grumbling of what the drive can be like.
My wife an I once flew out of Williamson County Regional Airport, to Minneapolis via Saint Louis. Quite convenient.
Some of the old documents mentioned trying to use old strip mined land to minimize impacts but there is a subsidence risk.....
Quote from: kphoger on January 14, 2020, 08:04:14 PM
My wife an I once flew out of Williamson County Regional Airport, to Minneapolis via Saint Louis. Quite convenient.
Cape Air just announced new service to Nashville from Veterans Airport of Southern Illinois (new name of the airport outside Marion).
Not many people know it, but the FAA subsidizes every flight in and out of Veterans.
Depending on the destination involved, for many people its cheaper to drive to Belleville, than to use Cape Air through Lambert in StL.
Allegiant already serves a large number of Illinois cities outside of Chicago.
Belleville (busiest by far)
Springfield
Bloomington
Rockford
Peoria
And they serve both Evansville and Owensboro across the Ohio River.
So I think this MSA is just not quite big enough to get a regularly scheduled major carrier.
So a highway update plan is completely in line with its size.
Interesting. Cape Air has been very slowly closing routes in the Northeast (oh, the irony).
The Government subsidized Passenger Air Service from MWA was up for renewal in 2019...5 carriers applied...Cape Air and SkyWest dba United Express were the Finalists
Cape Air's winning bid was slightly lower frequency to STL but adding flights to BNA...sold as the bid that connects to the 2 closest major, but not hub, airports, and more frequency
SkyWest's bid was 1 or 2 round trips to ORD daily...sold as the only bid that connects to a major hub airport
What probably hurt the SkyWest bid the most, is SkyWest basically has that 1 or 2 round trip service to ORD already at PAH and CGI, right across the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers, respectively
Quote from: ilpt4u on January 15, 2020, 08:40:41 PM
The Government subsidized Passenger Air Service from MWA was up for renewal in 2019...5 carriers applied...Cape Air and SkyWest dba United Express were the Finalists
Cape Air's winning bid was slightly lower frequency to STL but adding flights to BNA...sold as the bid that connects to the 2 closest major, but not hub, airports, and more frequency
SkyWest's bid was 1 or 2 round trips to ORD daily...sold as the only bid that connects to a major hub airport
What probably hurt the SkyWest bid the most, is SkyWest basically has that 1 or 2 round trip service to ORD already at PAH and CGI, right across the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers, respectively
BNA is big on Southwest. If SkyWest was taking you to ORD, your other discount choices outside a connection with United was Frontier or Spirit. Southwest only does MDW in Chicago. So I can only speculate that BNA was a better choice.
Not to get too far off the road here, but Allegiant has so many non-metro airfields in their service in the midwest, I have regularly flown into one and flown back from another airport.
I have flown to Indianapolis and back from Northern Kentucky (Cincy). Flown to Plattsburgh, New York, but back from Bangor, Maine.
Once flew into Belleville but needed a different date and flew out of Bloomington instead. Some friends of mine in Decatur fly out of Peoria regularly.
Flew into Springfield, MO and flew back from XNA (Northwest Arkansas).
My take is that if there is a decent interstate or 4-lane freeway between the airports, it does work. I have yet to have a rental car agent squawk about a drop off. At these small airports, any biz is good biz to them.
So if by improving transit times between Belleville and the southern tier increases access to air options, I would agree with it.
Quote from: edwaleni on January 18, 2020, 08:37:02 PM
So if by improving transit times between Belleville and the southern tier increases access to air options, I would agree with it.
Another benefit of increasing connectivity to BLV...the "other" half of that airfield is known as Scott Air Force Base, with just a few employees working and Service personnel stationed there
Quote from: ilpt4u on January 19, 2020, 01:38:12 PM
Quote from: edwaleni on January 18, 2020, 08:37:02 PM
So if by improving transit times between Belleville and the southern tier increases access to air options, I would agree with it.
Another benefit of increasing connectivity to BLV...the "other" half of that airfield is known as Scott Air Force Base, with just a few employees working and Service personnel stationed there
Illinois is extending METRO to Mid-America Airport:
https://www.stltoday.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/illinois-to-pay-for-long-sought-metrolink-extension-to-midamerica/article_473ea616-75fc-57d1-a131-6ae83a69eea2.html (https://www.stltoday.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/illinois-to-pay-for-long-sought-metrolink-extension-to-midamerica/article_473ea616-75fc-57d1-a131-6ae83a69eea2.html)
As for Scott AFB:
Recent road upgrades have been in support of it being made HQ for Air Mobility Command.
They also house several Cyber squadrons, Medical Airlift and some other commands.
Boeing has several technical resources there for F-18 testing.
There has been some discussion in the Illinois delegation about getting an ANG squadron rebased at either Springfield or Scott.
If it does go to Scott, that would again drive traffic as I am sure there are several ANG reservists who live in the southern tier.
^ MidAmerica has enough passenger traffic to justify a light rail connection? Unless there has been an explosion in traffic at that airport, this reeks of pork.
If Illinois reallly cared about road connections to Scott AFB, they should have kept the corridor protected for the Gateway Connector between I-55/I-70 and I-64.
Quote from: Revive 755 on January 19, 2020, 10:57:19 PM
^ MidAmerica has enough passenger traffic to justify a light rail connection? Unless there has been an explosion in traffic at that airport, this reeks of pork.
If Illinois reallly cared about road connections to Scott AFB, they should have kept the corridor protected for the Gateway Connector between I-55/I-70 and I-64.
It didn't for years, so the Metro extension was shelved....however....
QuoteMidAmerica's director, Tim Cantwell, said the airport last year served about 305,000 passengers, up from 50,000 in 2015. This year the total is projected to reach about 330,000, he said.
Pretty healthy for a 2 gate airport.
They also built a new parking facility which eliminated the free parking (which I think was stupid) and Enterprise has expanded their rental car lot there. Though it is still staffed out of the O'Fallon office. Free parking is a huge inducement for leisure travel, which BLV is supporting.
Unfortunately, there have been some very visible and public crime lately on Metro downtown which is scaring away riders.
As for BLV here are the stats. Unfortunately nothing is measured on where those people are coming from.
I would hazard a guess that at least 10-12% are coming from the Carbondale/Marion MSA.
Rank Airport Passengers Carrier
1 Destin, FL: VPS 31,360 Allegiant
2 St. Petersburg, FL: PIE 26,600 Allegiant
3 Punta Gorda, FL: PGD 23,430 Allegiant
4 Sanford, FL: SFB 22,140 Allegiant
5 Las Vegas, NV: LAS 14,380 Allegiant
6 Fort Lauderdale, FL: FLL 11,290 Allegiant
7 Jacksonville, FL: JAX 10,360 Allegiant
8 Mesa, AZ: AZA 8,990 Allegiant
9 Myrtle Beach, SC: MYR 4,790 Allegiant
Annual Domestic Passenger Traffic, 2005—Present[3]
Year Total Passengers % Change
2005 28,000 Steady
2006 49,550 Increase 76.96%
2007 51,370 Increase 3.67%
2008 47,030 Decrease 8.45%
2009 374 Decrease 99.20%
2010 274 Decrease 26.74%
2011 0 Decrease 100%
2012 3,830 Steady
2013 25,550 Increase 567.10%
2014 31,340 Increase 18.47%
2015 62,730 Increase 100.16%
2016 157,433 Increase 150.97%
2017 245,028 Increase 55.64%
2018 302,409 Increase 23.42%
Quote from: Revive 755 on January 19, 2020, 10:57:19 PM
^ MidAmerica has enough passenger traffic to justify a light rail connection? Unless there has been an explosion in traffic at that airport, this reeks of pork.
Could it be a good park and ride?
Quote from: NE2 on January 21, 2020, 09:46:23 PM
Quote from: Revive 755 on January 19, 2020, 10:57:19 PM
^ MidAmerica has enough passenger traffic to justify a light rail connection? Unless there has been an explosion in traffic at that airport, this reeks of pork.
Could it be a good park and ride?
They haven't published a schedule since it isn't built yet, but I would say the fact you gotta pay to park now might dissuade the park and ride crowd.
If they get smart about it, they would build such a lot for the park and ride crowd, if they could keep airport people from interloping, then it could work.
I know most of the workers at BLV (TSA, Ramp control) are managed and sourced out of Lambert, so they could easily reach the site now. The gate workers are local contractors.
The committee on the SI Connector met today in Murphysboro. Congressman Mike Bost (R-Murphysboro) was in attendance as well
Not much info on the content of the meeting from the story from WSIL-ABC3's website, but here is the story link: https://wsiltv.com/2020/02/21/coalition-seeks-funding-for-four-county-highway/
And here is the story from KFVS-CBS12's website: https://www.kfvs12.com/2020/02/22/southern-illinois-counties-say-theres-need-four-lane-expressway/
The Mayor of Murphysboro keeps posting the story links this evening, since he hosted today's meeting
IDOT could certainly add a few miles of 127 . The only 4 lane projects alive are that 67 and a little part of 34 as mentioned in Southern Illinois Notes.
The Pickneyville to St Louis study will be a long one. Also hard because they will have to look at 127 to 64 as an alternate. That will take forever but they could get they 17 miles of 127 done.Looks like they are .
I think they and IDOT are using the Mid State connector as a model.
There are a few routes they will have to decide on.
The "Waterloo" route using IL-3 to Red Bud then IL-154 to Pickneyville
The "Belleville" route using IL-15 to Freeburg, then IL-13 to Pickneyville via New Athens
Or a combo, where you use the Belleville route to Tilden and then use IL-4 to pick up IL-154 in Sparta to reach Pickneyville.
I think they should just keep going down past Sparta on IL-154 and just east of Sparta go south and pick up IL-4 at Willisville. Then use the IL-4 route all the way to IL-127/IL-13 north of Murphysboro. But that would skip Pickneyville and that obviously won't go over too well.
If it was about about making good time from the Metro East to Murphysboro (and on to the MSA), they would skip Pickneyville completely.
If it is about connectivity and economic development, then Pickneyville would be included.
I don't know what the big deal is with Pyramid State Park, it is just a former strip mine with a lot of trees on tailing dumps. I would rather have a more serious highway go by Kincaid Lake and attract more RV and large boat business.
Having camped, swam and boated on so many former strip mine sites in Indiana, I don't see the appeal.
They have done the engineering and land up to Pickneyville so I am sure of that section plus it is getting some funding in current plan.Another route is just going up 127 to 64 . Same distance to downtown and only 18 miles.
Quote from: 3467 on February 23, 2020, 06:22:14 PM
They have done the engineering and land up to Pickneyville so I am sure of that section plus it is getting some funding in current plan.Another route is just going up 127 to 64 . Same distance to downtown and only 18 miles.
IL-127 makes sense south of Pickneyville, but north of it is too close to US-51 and I-57 (IMHO).
Both the Waterloo and Belleville areas have been pushing population out further on their SE routes and have already been upgraded to freeways. Seems to make sense to improve those connections from the south that way.
IDOT needs to start looking at a new outer east beltway based on IL-4 than make improvements on IL-127 north of Pickneyville. Even the now deceased mayor of Lebanon (who was a proponent of US-50) knew that.
Bumping up this thread...the Mayor of Murphysboro, on the Southwest Connector Task Force, posted on FB tonight that Senator Tammy Duckworth has filed for a $210Million Earmark for the Murphysboro to Pickneyville section - I assume as part of the Infrastructure bill
Quote from: ilpt4u on July 12, 2021, 11:02:26 PM
Bumping up this thread...the Mayor of Murphysboro, on the Southwest Connector Task Force, posted on FB tonight that Senator Tammy Duckworth has filed for a $210Million Earmark for the Murphysboro to Pickneyville section - I assume as part of the Infrastructure bill
IDOT is in the process of awarding a $5.73 M contract to Samron Midwest Contracting Inc of Murphysboro Illinois to extend the 4-lane section of IL 13/127 north of Murphysboro. The 1. 3 mile project begins at Ava Road and ends just north of Grange Hall Road. Work includes constructing intersection improvements at IL 13/127 and Ava Rd/Kimmel Bridge Rd and at IL 13/127 and Grange Hall Road to Restricted Cross U-Turn (RCUT) Intersections, earthwork, drainage improvements and Hot Mix Asphalt (HMA) pavement and shoulders.
Carrie Nelsen, P.E. | Program Development Engineer
Illinois Department of Transportation | District 9
Per the Waterloo Republic-Times
https://www.republictimes.net/wheels-keep-turning-on-connector/ (https://www.republictimes.net/wheels-keep-turning-on-connector/)
Wheels keep turning on connector
(https://www.republictimes.net/site/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/SW-Illinois-Connector-Map.png)
A project to connect the St. Louis metro area with more of Southern Illinois dating back to the 1950s has recently received new attention.
The Four-County Highway Coalition is a collection of officials from Monroe, Randolph, Perry and Jackson counties attempting a new push for the long-awaited Southwest Illinois Connector.
The project centers around a proposed four-lane highway starting along Route 3 south of Waterloo, traveling just south of Red Bud and north of Sparta before rejoining Route 154, turning to avoid Pinckneyville and join Route 127 to Murphysboro.
Murphysboro Mayor Will Stephens was recently selected as chairman of the Southwest Connector Project. He spoke about the proposal's long history and how it was originally suggested due to the growth of Carbondale and that surrounding area.
State Senator Terri Bryant (R-Murphysboro) and other government officials have played a role in revitalizing the project for its most recent attempt.
Bryant and Stephens both spoke about recent efforts made on the project.
In 2018, Illinois Senate Joint Resolution No. 54 was passed to establish the Southwest Illinois Connector Task Force to study the cost, need and other aspects of the proposal.
The task force later disbanded following the publication of a substantial report detailing various findings.
"For a couple of years, that task force did their work and put together the study," Bryant said, "and we now have a really good study that we can take in a binder form to the feds."
More recent work done by the coalition that was formed after the task force has continued to build on that report.
Bryant specifically mentioned efforts on the part of her office to track down an original congressional record from decades ago that could serve to speed up the funding process for the project.
The congressional record, as Bryant says she has heard, contains a permanent authorization for the project that establishes a payment split that would see the federal government paying 95 percent of necessary funds and the state government paying 5 percent for the connector.
"What we're having to do is go backwards and find this originally because we found what could have been it, but it's been renamed, there's new numbers, we're not sure if it still means the same thing," Bryant said, "so we're trying to go back and find the original congressional record to show that it was even done."
Bryant added that, even if there was permanent authorization decades ago, the current legislature is not bound by previous legislation unless it is enshrined in law.
Bryant and Stephens spoke about the myriad of reasons such a project could benefit the region.
Bryant pointed to one of the most prominent selling points for the highway when it was first proposed: the ability for rural communities to more easily access healthcare in St. Louis.
"We're a very rural area for medical needs and not really a great way to get to the metro east," Bryant said.
Stephens said one of the biggest reasons for this highway is the simple inconvenience — and often danger — that traffic on two-lane roads in the area can pose for those trying to get to the metro east quickly.
He pointed to substantial bottlenecks at the Red Bud and Pinckneyville squares as well as major traffic tie-ups farm equipment can cause during planting and harvest seasons.
Stephens also spoke about the number of accidents that can occur on those roads, information that is further described in reports found on the coalition's website.
"There's a multitude of reasons why we need to build this highway and have needed to build it for decades," Stephens said, "and the reasons (then) are the same reasons today."
Stephens also suggested the additional infrastructure could have a positive effect on businesses in communities along the connector.
"It's also, no doubt, an economic activity project to boost infrastructure investment in the region, to provide drivers for business attraction. This would go a long, long way," Stephens said.
While the gears are turning once again for the connector project, it could be a long time before any construction starts.
Along with the issue of funding, Bryant said constituencies along the connector's proposed route would need to be consulted.
She added that communities in the area could feel quite different about the highway. Previously, Red Bud and much of Randolph County seemed to be positive about the project while Columbia and some of Monroe County seemed less enthusiastic.
"The entities within the Southwest Connector will have to have citizen meetings and allow for citizen input, so we could be 10 years down the road from even turning dirt," Bryant said.
For more information on the Southwest Illinois Connector, visit the Four-County Highway Coalition website at siconnector.com or call Stephens at 618-363-1308.
I'm surprised there isn't a northeastern bypass of Murphysboro tacked onto the route. I don't suppose the route's more direct route would go straight east to Pinckneyville and straight south from there, but I guess this is how the route has to be in order to properly incorporate Perry County into the four-county coalition.
Quote from: paulthemapguy on October 25, 2022, 09:32:31 PM
I'm surprised there isn't a northeastern bypass of Murphysboro tacked onto the route. I don't suppose the route's more direct route would go straight east to Pinckneyville and straight south from there, but I guess this is how the route has to be in order to properly incorporate Perry County into the four-county coalition.
A new Northeastern Murphysboro bypass would defeat the purpose of the existing 4-Lane IL 13/127 multiplex in Murphysboro, that is currently being extended northward about another mile
Would be a new terrain route and need a new Big Muddy River bridge
Depending on traffic control on the proposed routing via Pinckneyville then onto Sparta, it is still arguably faster to take Ava Blacktop out of Murphysboro to Rt 4 in Ava, thru Campbell Hill and Willisville, continue onto (Randolph/Perry) County Line Rd, and join the new 4-lane IL 154 there
Can't really go between the 13/127 and 4 corridors, tho, due to Pyramid State Park
Quote from: ilpt4u on October 25, 2022, 09:49:42 PM
Quote from: paulthemapguy on October 25, 2022, 09:32:31 PM
I'm surprised there isn't a northeastern bypass of Murphysboro tacked onto the route. I don't suppose the route's more direct route would go straight east to Pinckneyville and straight south from there, but I guess this is how the route has to be in order to properly incorporate Perry County into the four-county coalition.
A new Northeastern Murphysboro bypass would defeat the purpose of the existing 4-Lane IL 13/127 multiplex in Murphysboro, that is currently being extended northward about another mile
Would be a new terrain route and need a new Big Muddy River bridge
Depending on traffic control on the proposed routing via Pinckneyville then onto Sparta, it is still arguably faster to take Ava Blacktop out of Murphysboro to Rt 4 in Ava, thru Campbell Hill and Willisville, continue onto (Randolph/Perry) County Line Rd, and join the new 4-lane IL 154 there
Can't really go between the 13/127 and 4 corridors, tho, due to Pyramid State Park
As you are well aware, its not always the most direct route, nor the most efficient route that gets selected, it is the route that gets the most collective approvals from the impacted citizens.
When Allegiant stooged Marion's airport, the flight out of Belleville picked up a lot of people from that area. I asked many which way they came, up I-57 to I-64 I asked?
Oh no they said, they came up IL-127 to Pickneyville and then over to IL-4 on IL-13. Too many trucks and cops on I-57.
Quote from: edwaleni on October 26, 2022, 05:35:22 PM
When Allegiant stooged Marion's airport, the flight out of Belleville picked up a lot of people from that area. I asked many which way they came, up I-57 to I-64 I asked?
Oh no they said, they came up IL-127 to Pickneyville and then over to IL-4 on IL-13. Too many trucks and cops on I-57.
FWIW, when I lived in Herrin, my usual route between Belleville and home was...
IL-127 to Pinckneyville
IL-13 to Vergennes
FAS-1916 to Elkville
US-51 for about a quarter-mile
FAS-869 to Royalton
IL-149 to Hurst
FAS-907 to Blairsville
FAS-908 to Herrin
Quote from: edwaleni on October 26, 2022, 05:35:22 PM
As you are well aware, its not always the most direct route, nor the most efficient route that gets selected, it is the route that gets the most collective approvals from the impacted citizens.
When Allegiant stooged Marion's airport, the flight out of Belleville picked up a lot of people from that area. I asked many which way they came, up I-57 to I-64 I asked?
Oh no they said, they came up IL-127 to Pickneyville and then over to IL-4 on IL-13. Too many trucks and cops on I-57.
Once the 6-laning of 57 is done between Marion and Mt Vernon the issues of using I-57 will decrease, but as that project progresses, there is construction, and then the current 4-lane sections of 57 and the high truck traffic volume honestly makes the road feel unsafe at times
Those that live closer to the 127 corridor, it is a no brainer to take 127 up to 64, or use Ava Blacktop/IL 4/County Line Rd/Rt 13/IL 4 again to get to BLV or even onto St Louis
But even if you live closer to Marion, the 127 routing is at least competitive, in its current state. Potentially upgraded to a 4-lane expressway corridor should make it moreso, assuming the number of allowed signals is kept decently low while maintaining safety
Quote from: kphoger on October 26, 2022, 05:49:25 PM
FWIW, when I lived in Herrin, my usual route between Belleville and home was...
IL-127 to Pinckneyville
IL-13 to Vergennes
FAS-1916 to Elkville (Elkville-Vergennes Rd/Blacktop)
US-51 for about a quarter-mile
FAS-869 to Royalton (Elkville-Royalton Rd/Blacktop)
IL-149 to Hurst
FAS-907 to Blairsville (Cambria Rd)
FAS-908 to Herrin (Herrin Rd)
Added the Road names, where appropriate
I drive many of these roads daily
Update on the siconnector.com website: Mayor Will Stephens of Murphysboro is now Chairman of the Four County Highway Coalition aka the Southern Illinois Connector coalition. And with that, the City of Murphysboro, on behalf of the Four County Highway Coalition, has applied for a $387 Million grant via MEGA funding as part of the Biden Infrastructure Act for the Southern Illinois Connector
https://www.siconnector.com/
Would this possibly be a future corridor for an I-24 extension to St Louis?
Quote from: hobsini2 on October 29, 2022, 04:55:49 PM
Would this possibly be a future corridor for an I-24 extension to St Louis?
It is not planned as a freeway, at this point. Historically this corridor has been looked at as a freeway, and as a tollway. Right now the corridor is planning and developing as a 4-lane expressway, with how much access control yet to be decided
The segment being built right now, 1 mile north of where the previous 13/127 4-lane ended in Murphysboro, is going to incorporate "Michigan Lefts" or J-turns or whatever you want to call them, at Ava Rd/Kimmel Bridge Rd and at Grange Hall Rd, so traffic at those cross-roads will not be allowed to cross-over 13/127, and will be forced to turn right onto 13/127, and use the new Michigan Left turn-arounds to either complete the "Michigan Left" and go the other direction on 13/127 or to continue straight on the "other" side of the highway
13/127 traffic will be allowed to turn left at these 2 intersections, tho
Quote from: ilpt4u on October 29, 2022, 07:09:33 PM
The segment being built right now, 1 mile north of where the previous 13/127 4-lane ended in Murphysboro, is going to incorporate "Michigan Lefts" or J-turns or whatever you want to call them, at Ava Rd/Kimmel Bridge Rd and at Grange Hall Rd, so traffic at those cross-roads will not be allowed to cross-over 13/127, and will be forced to turn right onto 13/127, and use the new Michigan Left turn-arounds to either complete the "Michigan Left" and go the other direction on 13/127 or to continue straight on the "other" side of the highway
Proper terminology here would be "J-turns", as a "Michigan Left" still allows through traffic on the cross road, and it appears that will not be the case here.
Quote from: froggie on October 29, 2022, 07:17:27 PM
Proper terminology here would be "J-turns", as a "Michigan Left" still allows through traffic on the cross road, and it appears that will not be the case here.
I honestly didn't know there was a difference between Michigan Lefts and J-Turns. Thought they were the same! So there is a difference. Point taken
Quote from: ilpt4u on October 29, 2022, 07:33:25 PM
Quote from: froggie on October 29, 2022, 07:17:27 PM
Proper terminology here would be "J-turns", as a "Michigan Left" still allows through traffic on the cross road, and it appears that will not be the case here.
I honestly didn't know there was a difference between Michigan Lefts and J-Turns. Thought they were the same! So there is a difference. Point taken
They're similar enough. The J-Turn is a variation on the Michigan Left that's also used by MDOT.
I visited this area for the first time yesterday, specifically to add these four counties to my list. I went from I-255 to I-57 via IL 3, IL 154, IL 4, CR 18, US 51, IL 14. It seemed like a nice area, though it was very foggy/rainy so I didn't get to see much.
The Southwest Connector got some press recently on WSIL/ABC-3 out of Carterville. The Mayor of Murphysboro, who also serves as the Chair of the SWC Board, is interviewed during the piece. He sounds pretty hopeful and confident the Biden Bill will provide $$$ for it, as apparently there is language specifically to help coal-dominant regions. Also wants $20Mil/year for 10 years from the State of IL for the project
https://youtu.be/nrLBRTISqwo
Glad to see this is getting local support and possible federal funding.
I asked a former co-worker about this connector and she knew all about it. She was not very positive.
"I moved away from Dupo to get away from crime and stupidity and now you want to make it easier for it to get to Columbia?"
I am sure that doesn't reflect everyone's views, but it was a blunt reminder that sometimes people don't want easier transporation.
As for the earlier interview talking about reaching better medical care in the Metro East, this has been a serious issue nationally after the ACA was passed.
When the Medicare reimbursement rates were lowered in favor of the exchanges, many regional healthcare facilities got killed since the locals (who didn't have employer based HC) couldn't afford coverage under the ACA exchange system.
This forced many regional hospitals to drop their advanced diagnostics becuase they couldn't make enough money. This forced more patients to get referred to facilities yet farther away from where they live just to get simple things like cat scans.
I know this is a highway blog, but the passing of the ACA really screwed small town, rural america, and forces them to move to larger cities or drive yet farther to get decent diagnostics.
Smaller town hospitals and clinics are turning into birthing wards and dying wards with an emergency room. Everyone in between has to drive somewhere to find decent care.
<rant over>
More Local TV Press coverage for the SWIC, this time on KFVS/CBS 12 out of Cape Girardeau (FYI it is a weird TV market, containing Southern IL where the ABC affiliate is, Southeastern MO where the CBS and FOX affiliates are, and Western KY where the NBC affiliate is)
https://www.kfvs12.com/2023/03/10/highway-connecting-southern-illinois-st-louis-could-be-real-possibility/
Quote from: ilpt4u on March 12, 2023, 02:29:47 PM
More Local TV Press coverage for the SWIC, this time on KFVS/CBS 12 out of Cape Girardeau (FYI it is a weird TV market, containing Southern IL where the ABC affiliate is, Southeastern MO where the CBS and FOX affiliates are, and Western KY where the NBC affiliate is)
https://www.kfvs12.com/2023/03/10/highway-connecting-southern-illinois-st-louis-could-be-real-possibility/
When I was a kid we used to turn our antenna rotor SW so we could pick up Cape Girardeau. At the time it was one of the tallest TV towers in the country.
We lived in an interesting area where we could get St Louis, Evansville, Terre Haute, Cape Girardeau and Carbondale (SIU). But not Champaign-Urbana, Decatur or Springfield.
Dad said he would have to raise the TV antenna another 20 feet and it wasn't worth it. When a storm took out our antenna, we were one of the first to get cable and that ended the Cape Girardeau experience.