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Southern Illinois Notes

Started by 3467, October 26, 2019, 01:40:43 PM

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3467

I thought I should stick to the geographic rules of AA roads. I will go over the major projects South of I 72 in the new Capital Plan.
I 57 More 6 lanes between 24 and 64.
Lebanon bypass . This is a 3 miles bypass that better connects US 50 to I 64.
There were 4 lane studies of 51 and 50 both of those have vanished.
Be interesting to find out more.
A 4 lane and Pickneyville bypass also disappeared. Instead there is thru town reconstruction of that road. There is another study of that corridor by a legislative mandate called the southwest corridor.
There is one expansion project that continues past this current plan. That is US 67 from Jerseyville to the existing expressway. A little over half the remainder will be done while land will be acquired for the rest.
There are a lot of reconstruction and resurfacing and new bridges like 270 over the Mississippi.


ilpt4u

https://www.siconnector.com/

Mayor of Murphysboro posted on fb the other day that he is on the Task Force for the Southwest Illinois Connector, trying to get some kind of rural expressway from Murphysboro to Columbia/roughly an upgrade for IL 127-IL 3

In the Capital Bill project list, more 6 Laning of IL 13 near Crab Orchard Lake is included, getting closer to 6 Lanes fully between Carbondale and Marion

3467

I was surprised IDOT  didn't include that first segment. The 50 and 51 studies never got that far. There was not much support for 51 during the EIS.

edwaleni

Quote from: 3467 on October 26, 2019, 06:29:56 PM
I was surprised IDOT  didn't include that first segment. The 50 and 51 studies never got that far. There was not much support for 51 during the EIS.

Did you say the Lebanon Bypass did or did not make the cut for the capital plan?

The US-51 hearings for the Ramsey to Vandalia (south of town) route was total foobar, so I am not surprised it got dropped.

*Everyone* wants a 4 lane activity, Vandalia just doesn't like what it takes, so IDOT was making all sort of of compromises and re-routes that made it functionally worthless.

So what you got was a "plan" that no one liked.  IDOT last showed a west bypass of the city that has US-51 as a full interchange with co-signage on I-70 as far as original US-51 North.  But people didnt like the property acquisition requirements to rehab that exit.

IDOT really wanted to do a bypass on the east side of the Kaskaskia River, and technically it makes the most sense since it is mostly a flood zone.  But the locals complained that it would simply allow traffic to bypass town completely and no one would ever "see" it. Well, isn't that what a bypass is?

You don't want property to go, so no urban elevation.

You don't want property to go, so no west bypass.

You don't want people to drive past you, so no east bypass.

So, no road at all.

3467

Yes Lebanon bypass is there and fully funded. Only 67 hints of further new construction because the land acquisition is funded to Jerseyville.
I remember that about 51 . IDOT  outright cancelled the 30 project for the same reason.
They just did their passive aggressive thing here with 51.
Now the section between Olney and Illinois 1 on 50 vanished too. Do you know why that was?

3467

The notes of those 51 meeting are online under featured projects. The consultants told them they had to make the road very high type to meet the purpose and need . So it seemed to be a hated bypass or nothing.
What happened to 50? It vanished from featured projects. The consultants there has trouble fitting it in The existing ROW.

3467

There was an article that said IDOT  told the Southwest connector group above  to apply for Build grants. Unless they do that I suspect nothing will happen Pickneyville has a different may who did not want a bypass so my guess is its over. The 50 and 51 projects never got past Phase I so they would have to start from scratch again.

I have been though the whole plan. There is an add lanes on 40 in Effingham and some major construction on IL 3 in metro East.

edwaleni

Quote from: 3467 on October 30, 2019, 11:46:33 AM
Yes Lebanon bypass is there and fully funded. Only 67 hints of further new construction because the land acquisition is funded to Jerseyville.
I remember that about 51 . IDOT  outright cancelled the 30 project for the same reason.
They just did their passive aggressive thing here with 51.
Now the section between Olney and Illinois 1 on 50 vanished too. Do you know why that was?

I have been checking on the US-50 plan from Olney to US-1 and don't see any official decisions as of yet.

Just an update on the US50 Coalition Facebook page from 2018.

https://www.facebook.com/us50coalition/photos/a.1714371495265338/1714371475265340/?type=3&theater

Olney and Richland County in general are part of the US50 Coalition, but I see the coalition website is malfunctioning.

Seeing that IDOT was spreading the wealth in dribbles around the state, I can assume politically that the Lebanon Bypass was the most effective way to placate the coalition lobby.




3467

They were on the featured project list. Then just vanished. When I tried their website it was hijacked.
I am really curious. When we get some time I may ask my wife to FOIA about it.
You can try if you want .
You have to word it right to get info. On discussions.

I plan to specifically FOIA the decision on corridor protection  on Corridor Protection for US 67 between Illinois 104 and Macomb.

Time period this year and last year.

We probably won't get to it before Christmas if anyone else wants to go for it. They have to get back to you in a week.But that is the kind nonspecific wording.

edwaleni

Quote from: 3467 on November 04, 2019, 12:27:48 PM
They were on the featured project list. Then just vanished. When I tried their website it was hijacked.
I am really curious. When we get some time I may ask my wife to FOIA about it.
You can try if you want .
You have to word it right to get info. On discussions.

I plan to specifically FOIA the decision on corridor protection  on Corridor Protection for US 67 between Illinois 104 and Macomb.

Time period this year and last year.

We probably won't get to it before Christmas if anyone else wants to go for it. They have to get back to you in a week.But that is the kind nonspecific wording.

I have reached out to a member of the US50 Coalition to see what the scoop is among the membership.

3467

Great. I would be interested in hearing. I have been a member of Corridor 67 but they have had no updates .
If I were them I would try together passing lanes and keep the 4 lane ROW .
That doesn't take years of study and the money. Add to that Indian has no plans for the corridor.

3467

FHWA EIS database is gone but EPA has one back to the nineties.  51 never had a final filed. Probably never will 50 and 127 were just assessments and 50 was never finished.
Adding Illinois 154 to Illinois 3 makes me think they would have to do a whole EIS.

edwaleni


Rick Powell

Quote from: 3467 on November 04, 2019, 12:27:48 PM
I plan to specifically FOIA the decision on corridor protection  on Corridor Protection for US 67 between Illinois 104 and Macomb.

One thing is for certain. Sometime around the 10-year anniversary of the corridor protection, by law IDOT needs to hold a public hearing and then make a decision whether they should extend the corridor protection another 10 years. They can always get rid of it before the 10 years runs out, at their discretion.

3467

Yes that is what it was a public hearing. I submitted comments. We will FOIA the decision.

edwaleni

I might add that back in 1972 there was a large amount of truck traffic on US 50 headed west to St Louis.

Refined oil products from Lawrenceville
Large concrete plant in Salem, while the Quebecor printing plant came in 1976.
International Shoe & AMF bicycle plant in Olney
Brown Shoe in Flora
Timken in Carlyle

Of these only 2 remain.

So it should be no shock that the AADT between Salem & Olney is really poor. The AADT they expected back in 1972, most of those traffic creators are long, long gone.

3467

Looking at some of the discussion I found they were trying to fit it in the existing ROW. I wonder if they couldn't and that would have triggered an EIS noting Edwaleni comments could not have gone anywhere.

edwaleni

Quote from: 3467 on November 09, 2019, 11:22:38 AM
Looking at some of the discussion I found they were trying to fit it in the existing ROW. I wonder if they couldn't and that would have triggered an EIS noting Edwaleni comments could not have gone anywhere.

I have not heard back from the US50 Coalition yet on what exactly happened between Olney and Lawrenceville.

Yes, I heard there were some issues with some private residence creep east of Olney where a frontage road won't fit.  But IDOT still owns the former IL-250 .

3467

I DOT kills a lot of projects quietly over local objections. It happened all up and down 51. There was 34 through Sandwich. The flip of 336 to 24. And recently it looked like they were going ton3 lane 20 through Galena  and they cut that back to just some turn lanes because of local objections.
That southwest planning project is going to be interesting with Pickneyville not wanting a bypass.
I think a lot of this seems Prometheus screw up on Roseville. They kept insisting that Rosevile be bypassed or bulldozed with 5 lanes through town.Then later the admit 3 would have been fine.
Personally I would do that if I were Jerseyville or Carrolton or any of these small towns.

Iowa has it as policy. The link to US 30 is in Iowa notes.
Hopefully there will be lots of indictments and we can get some new blood into that department.

edwaleni

Quote from: 3467 on October 30, 2019, 11:46:33 AM
Yes Lebanon bypass is there and fully funded. Only 67 hints of further new construction because the land acquisition is funded to Jerseyville.


As I noted in another forum thread, IDOT already owns a large amount of ROW south around Lebanon.

What i would like to know is will they truncate it at IL-4 (Madison Street) and force US-50 to zig-zag over the closed CSX tracks?  Or will they take it all the way to Air Mobility Drive where a full cloverleaf is in service?


3467

That looks like the route in the plan. I wonder if they might reroute 50 along 4?
Will it be 4 or 2 .?
Also I was thinking of moving the line from 72 to 74.that pretty much groups all the downstate projects into this area. The great lakes followers seem mostly interested in Chicago projects.

3467

I expect to get a lot of construction pics for 34 . Somewhat less for the Beardstown Bridge and 97 . Hope to get some of 24.
Hopefully we can get 50 and 67 pics from Jerseyville.
I hope to get the start to finish on 34.
We posted some good ones here of the 67 construction near Jacksonville many years ago

edwaleni

Don't laugh...this is from 2014.


- Phase I engineering for location studies and preparation of an Environmental Impact Statement for the project from Illinois 158/Interstate 64 to Illinois 127 north of Carlyle was approved in 1978. The design report and EIS are no longer valid and would require re-evaluation.

The proposed section from Illinois 158 at Interstate 64 east of O'Fallon to Illinois 4 in Lebanon in St. Clair County, with its major environmental impacts in the Silver Creek wetlands area, may not be approved. A west-end terminus at Illinois 4 in Lebanon would eliminate these impacts. Also, the alignment proposed for the Carlyle bypass on the north side of Carlyle on the dam for Lake Carlyle is on federal park land.

- All structures for an access-controlled four-lane divided highway from Summerfield Road east of Lebanon to Illinois 127, north of Carlyle have been built on the new alignment.

- About 95 percent of the right-of-way parcels have been acquired for a four-lane divided highway from Interstate 64 to Illinois 127 north of Carlyle.


- Interstate 57 west of Salem  to the Indiana state line at Vincennes:

- U.S. 50 is two-lane for 68.6 miles from Interstate 57 west of Salem to east of Lawrenceville, except at interchanges with Interstate 57 west of Salem and east of Flora at U.S.  45, where it is a four-lane divided highway. U.S. 50  is a four-lane freeway for 7.4 miles from east of Lawrenceville to the Indiana state line at Vincennes.

Current status:

- A feasibility study for upgrading U.S. 50 to four lanes from Interstate 57 west of Salem to east of Illinois 1, about 74 miles, was completed in 2008 at a cost of $1.7 million.

- Phase I engineering for location, environmental and design studies for the section of U.S. 50 from two miles west of Illinois Route 130 to Lawrenceville was started in March 2011 and is in progress, at a current cost of $3.1 million with an additional $1 .2 million programmed in FY 2014.

- Archaeological surveys were completed at a cost of $150,000.

- Phase II engineering for contract plans for the section of U.S. 50 from two miles west of Illinois 130 to Lawrenceville is programmed during FY 2015-2019 at a cost of $693,000.

History:

- Phase I engineering studies were completed from Salem to the Indiana state line between 1969 and 1973. These studies are no longer valid and new studies are required.

- Right-of-way was acquired between Xenia and the Indiana state line for the expansion of U.S. 50 to a four-lane divided highway.

- The estimated cost to complete all engineering, land acquisition, utility adjustments and construction for a four-lane divided highway ranges from $728 million to $800 million.

The cost range was developed from estimates in the feasibility study, which used 25 percent contingency and a base year of 2007. Depending on the year of construction and inflation these costs are only a rough estimate.
- A feasibility study for upgrading U.S. 50 to four lanes from Interstate 57 west of Salem to east of Illinois 1, about 74 miles, was completed in 2008 at a cost of $1.7 million.



3467

This is really interesting and really summarizes US 50 There is really nothing that can be done from Carlyle to Salem.
I still wonder why the 130 to 1 was dropped.

3467

In fairness to I DOT they did a good job of finding the only justifiable segments. Lebanon of course. The Olney was to be a connection to 69. IN DOT had no further plans . Perhaps there was something found wanting in their phase 1. IDOT can blame or thank IN DOT for killing off both the 50 and 1 corridors.
US 51 was killed by the locals The engineering firm told them they had to have the hated bypasses for the Purpose and Need statement. Not sure if that is fully true this days. FHWA has been going softer on NEPA.
I do wonder if the southwest group could get into NEPA trouble over the approved section Pickneyville South now being part of a larger project?



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