Illinois Tollway Notes

[ET21]

A 5th lane will officially open north of North Ave up to O'Hare the next two weeks

[Revive 755]

There is a study for redoing the Tri-State interchange with IL 19/Irving Park Road with a public meeting on October 8:  https://www.illinoistollway.com/tri-state-tollway-irving-park-road

Some of the concepts on the website remove what's left of the O'Hare Oasis for southbound, with a few others that appear to change the O'Hare Oasis to only truck fueling (only for southbound?).

[Joe The Dragon]

There is a study for redoing the Tri-State interchange with IL 19/Irving Park Road with a public meeting on October 8:  https://www.illinoistollway.com/tri-state-tollway-irving-park-road

Some of the concepts on the website remove what's left of the O'Hare Oasis for southbound, with a few others that appear to change the O'Hare Oasis to only truck fueling (only for southbound?).

why not remove what is left of the old main line toll as part of this for some of the plans?

[hobsini2]

There is a study for redoing the Tri-State interchange with IL 19/Irving Park Road with a public meeting on October 8:  https://www.illinoistollway.com/tri-state-tollway-irving-park-road

Some of the concepts on the website remove what's left of the O'Hare Oasis for southbound, with a few others that appear to change the O'Hare Oasis to only truck fueling (only for southbound?).

I like the idea of removing the current SB exit ramps and having all traffic that wants Irving to get off at the Montrose Ave light. And adding a NB exit/SB entrance at the Oasis is good.

[lstone19]

why not remove what is left of the old main line toll as part of this for some of the plans?

None of the old mainline toll plazas serve any purpose now that the road is fully I-Pass or pay online. The current mainline booth plazas are vestiges of when the high-speed lanes were I-Pass only and non I-Pass traffic paid cash at those plazas. Now that cash has been replaced by "pay online" and "pay online" tolls can be handled through the high-speed lanes, there is no reason for those side mainline plazas to still be there. They're just in the way and are more of a hazard than anything else now. At some of them, exiting or entering traffic is forced through them to avoid weaving areas that wouldn't exist if those side plazas were eliminated.

[hobsini2]

why not remove what is left of the old main line toll as part of this for some of the plans?

None of the old mainline toll plazas serve any purpose now that the road is fully I-Pass or pay online. The current mainline booth plazas are vestiges of when the high-speed lanes were I-Pass only and non I-Pass traffic paid cash at those plazas. Now that cash has been replaced by "pay online" and "pay online" tolls can be handled through the high-speed lanes, there is no reason for those side mainline plazas to still be there. They're just in the way and are more of a hazard than anything else now. At some of them, exiting or entering traffic is forced through them to avoid weaving areas that wouldn't exist if those side plazas were eliminated.

I have a feeling that the ISTHA is planning on using the footprint of some of the mainline plazas (83rd/82nd, Cermak, Irving Park, O'Hare, Waukegan, Aurora, Elgin) for semi truck parking. They started doing this on 294 down by 163rd St. It makes sense too. Gives those guys a "rest area" without having to get off the highway.

[edwaleni]

Can you imagine if the Illinois Tollway had kept the over highway plazas, but simply turned them into another Buc-ees? 50 fuel pumps on each side? Shopping and a BBQ as you watch cars pass by below?

[Joe The Dragon]

why not remove what is left of the old main line toll as part of this for some of the plans?

None of the old mainline toll plazas serve any purpose now that the road is fully I-Pass or pay online. The current mainline booth plazas are vestiges of when the high-speed lanes were I-Pass only and non I-Pass traffic paid cash at those plazas. Now that cash has been replaced by "pay online" and "pay online" tolls can be handled through the high-speed lanes, there is no reason for those side mainline plazas to still be there. They're just in the way and are more of a hazard than anything else now. At some of them, exiting or entering traffic is forced through them to avoid weaving areas that wouldn't exist if those side plazas were eliminated.

I have a feeling that the ISTHA is planning on using the footprint of some of the mainline plazas (83rd/82nd, Cermak, Irving Park, O'Hare, Waukegan, Aurora, Elgin) for semi truck parking. They started doing this on 294 down by 163rd St. It makes sense too. Gives those guys a "rest area" without having to get off the highway.

some of them also have Road maintenance depot.

But with an ramp change they can nuke the old tolls and just add an over head scanner in the exit CD lanes.

[Joe The Dragon]

There is a study for redoing the Tri-State interchange with IL 19/Irving Park Road with a public meeting on October 8:  https://www.illinoistollway.com/tri-state-tollway-irving-park-road

Some of the concepts on the website remove what's left of the O'Hare Oasis for southbound, with a few others that appear to change the O'Hare Oasis to only truck fueling (only for southbound?).

I had spui idea years ago.
https://www.aaroads.com/forum/index.php?topic=10015.msg236033#msg236033

[CtrlAltDel]

There is a study for redoing the Tri-State interchange with IL 19/Irving Park Road with a public meeting on October 8:  https://www.illinoistollway.com/tri-state-tollway-irving-park-road

Some of the concepts on the website remove what's left of the O'Hare Oasis for southbound, with a few others that appear to change the O'Hare Oasis to only truck fueling (only for southbound?).

I had spui idea years ago.
https://www.aaroads.com/forum/index.php?topic=10015.msg236033#msg236033

They had that idea, and it's what I would have gone with. It was rejected, though, apparently due to difficulties with the (no longer really used) manual toll area.

[ET21]

Curious they didn't just add this to the central rebuild project

[Great Lakes Roads]

Next pair of toll plazas to be removed and replaced with an AET system: Golf Road (Plaza 28)- NB entrance, SB exit

I-24-4965 - Plaza Improvements & Bridge Rehabilitation

"The work under this contract includes partial demolition, reconstruction, and conversion of plazas to all electronic; earthwork; bridge rehabilitation for the I-294 ramp bridge over Golf Road (BN 317); installation of plaza monotubes, pavement marking, signing, lighting and Intelligent Transportation Systems equipment; drainage improvements; bituminous asphalt paving; concrete paving; precast control building installation; maintenance of traffic and other miscellaneous work."

https://www.illinoistollwaybidding.com/projects/5970/plans/i-24-4965-plaza-improvements-bridge-rehabilitation

[Great Lakes Roads]

Looking at future biddings on the Tollway system, there are a lot of "Plaza Improvements" highlighted...

I-294 (Miscellaneous)- Plaza 19 and Plaza 32 Improvements, I-90, MP 78.5 (Des Plaines River) and I-294, MP 40.5 (O'Hare East Plaza)

I-90 (Improvements)- Plaza 15 and Plaza 75 Improvements, I-90, MP 68.0 (I-290/IL 53) and I-355, MP 27.8 (North Avenue)

SW (Improvements)- Plaza Improvements, I-90, MP 62.2 (Barrington Road) to MP 70.9 (Arlington Heights Road)

SW (Improvements)- Plaza Improvements, I-88, MP 114.4 (Orchard Road) to MP 119.5 (Farnsworth Avenue)

SW (Improvements)- Plaza Improvements, I-90, MP 54.4 (IL 31) to MP 60.1 (IL 59)

I-90 (Repairs)- Pavement and Structural Preservation and Plaza Improvements, I-90, MP 12.6 (East Riverside Boulevard) to MP 30.3 (Garden Prairie Road)

SW (Repairs)- Plaza Improvements at Plaza 34, Plaza 38, Plaza 40, I-294, MP 22.0 (75th Street) to MP 6.4 (159th Street)

SW (Improvements)- Plaza Improvements, I-88, MP 124.8 (Winfield Road) to MP 134.3 (Highland Avenue)

https://agency.illinoistollway.com/documents/20184/86505/Construction+Bid+Letting+Schedule/9daeb74d-04df-43b1-988f-3c1a9a6c9832

[ET21]

We had a shift on NB 294 between Cermak and North Ave. It's 5 lanes now from the Cermak Toll to at least the I-290 Chicago exit, then the express kicks in again with two left and two right with the I-290 west exit only lane.

[Great Lakes Roads]

https://www.dailyherald.com/20241120/transportation/just-follow-the-arrows-tollway-unveils-i-294-smartroad-system-to-give-real-time-traffic-tips/
(TLDR: The SmartRoad technology has expanded to the I-294 corridor with the first segment active between Wolf Road and Balmoral Avenue)

Just follow the arrows: Tollway unveils I-294 SmartRoad system to give real-time traffic tips

It's the Tri-State Tollway's turn for SmartRoad technology.

The Illinois tollway on Wednesday activated a SmartRoad system on the Central Tri-State. The technology deploys 14 gantries that display digital messages directing traffic and alerting drivers about issues ahead.

Similar to the Jane Addams Tollway SmartRoad that went live in 2017, the I-294 version introduced Wednesday will stretch between Wolf Road and Balmoral Avenue.

The system will expand and eventually there will be 80 gantries placed every half mile on I-294 between Oak Lawn and Rosemont.

"Our SmartRoad delivers real-time information to drivers to provide safer and more efficient travel," said Executive Director Cassaundra Rouse before switching on a new gantry near the Irving Park Toll Plaza.

How does it work?

"The tollway operates a network of digital, high-definition cameras that cover the entire corridor, allowing our traffic operation center to closely monitor and quickly respond to crashes and other incidents on the roadway," Chief Engineer Manar Nashif said.

In addition, advanced wireless sensors on the mainline and ramps provide details about traffic flow and backups. All that information is conveyed to drivers via messages on the gantries.

"If a lane of traffic is blocked by a crash we post a red X over that lane on the overhead gantry nearest the incident indicating the lane is closed ahead," said Steve Mednis, deputy chief of traffic and incident management.

After installing SmartRoad on I-90, engineers found the "advanced messaging and warnings mean drivers are less likely to be surprised and forced to stop abruptly to avoid a crash," Mednis said.

It also reduces the risk of a secondary crash when a vehicle slowing down suddenly is hit by another vehicle, he added.

SmartRoad data can be shared with navigation apps like MapQuest and Google Maps. It also can be updated with new features as they become available.

The tollway is in the midst of a massive rebuild and widening on the Central Tri-State between Balmoral Road in Rosemont and 95th Street near Oak Lawn. The 22-mile project wraps up in 2027.

Earlier in the week, the tollway opened a fifth lane in each direction near O'Hare. Currently, I-294 has five lanes both ways from North Avenue to Irving Park Road and from 95th Street to I-55.

The Tri-State carries the most passenger vehicles and trucks of all the tollway corridors, plus it has two times the congestion delays.

[ET21]

The beginnings of the new SB 294 to I-55 ramp are starting to take shape. The exit has been shifted further north closer to the Oasis with it's own protected lane now. Gonna be tight for a bit with people exiting/merging at the Oasis

[Great Lakes Roads]

https://wgntv.com/news/northwest-suburbs/major-progress-being-made-in-i-490-tollway-project-officials-say/

Update on the I-490 Tollway project... completion date: FALL 2027 (three years away)!

[edwaleni]

https://wgntv.com/news/northwest-suburbs/major-progress-being-made-in-i-490-tollway-project-officials-say/

Update on the I-490 Tollway project... completion date: FALL 2027 (three years away)!

They say 15 years in the making.....me thinks more like 30+ years.

[SSOWorld]

https://wgntv.com/news/northwest-suburbs/major-progress-being-made-in-i-490-tollway-project-officials-say/

Update on the I-490 Tollway project... completion date: FALL 2027 (three years away)!

They say 15 years in the making.....me thinks more like 30+ years.

Moving at the speed of Illinois. (Though ISTHA does move at a turtle's pace compared to IDOT moving at a snail's pace)

[edwaleni]

https://wgntv.com/news/northwest-suburbs/major-progress-being-made-in-i-490-tollway-project-officials-say/

Update on the I-490 Tollway project... completion date: FALL 2027 (three years away)!

They say 15 years in the making.....me thinks more like 30+ years.

Moving at the speed of Illinois. (Though ISTHA does move at a turtle's pace compared to IDOT moving at a snail's pace)

I remember when IL-390 was being planned out to Lake Street and the arguments with CDOT and IDOT were going on then. (1989-1990). They even designed the median to support future transit system to O'Hare Western Access (long since removed by ISTHA).

IDOT still owns 90% of the ROW from Lake Street to IL-59 but I digress, as that is covered elsewhere. It shouldn't take 50 years to build a road defined as needed in the late 1960's.

[ET21]

SB 294 to the Hinsdale Oasis ramp is now a good 1/2 mile before now with the exit, shifted onto new roadway

[paulthemapguy]

SB 294 to the Hinsdale Oasis ramp is now a good 1/2 mile before now with the exit, shifted onto new roadway

I drove through that mess trying to get from I-294 SB to I-55 SB and...good lord...what a mess.  Everyone was slowing to 35mph just to figure out what the hell was going on. That was fun to drive through fairly late at night.

[GeekJedi]

SB 294 to the Hinsdale Oasis ramp is now a good 1/2 mile before now with the exit, shifted onto new roadway

I drove through that mess trying to get from I-294 SB to I-55 SB and...good lord...what a mess.  Everyone was slowing to 35mph just to figure out what the hell was going on. That was fun to drive through fairly late at night.

The thing that drove me nuts last time is that even though there are lane restrictions for trucks, they are completely ignored.

[Great Lakes Roads]

https://agency.illinoistollway.com/-/illinois-tollway-board-approves-new-7-year-2-billion-dollar-capital-plan

Bridging the Future Capital Plan Overview
The 7-year, $2 billion Bridging the Future capital plan approved by the Board will fund planning, design and construction to address ongoing modernization efforts that advance the region's transportation network. The capital plan supports the Tollway's ongoing investments in the people and firms that help deliver transformational projects that keep the region moving.

Bridging the Future projects include:

Connecting Infrastructure – $258 million for interchange work design and construction including the Veterans Memorial Tollway (I-355)/Reagan Memorial Tollway (I-88) Interchange as well as the Illinois Route 390 Tollway at County Farm Road and I-88 at York Road/ 22nd Street interchanges.  An investment will also be made for improvements to the Lake Cook Road Bridge over the Tri-State Tollway (I-94).

Improving Mobility - $725 million for investments for bridge reconstruction and strategic widening projects including local crossroad and mainline bridges on the Tri-State Tollway (I-294), railroad bridges on the Tri-State Tollway (I-294) and Reagan Memorial Tollway (I-88), as well as local crossroad bridge reconstruction on the north end of the Tri-State Tollway (I-94).

Modernizing the System – $532 million for investments in system improvements and maintenance systemwide, including for bridge repairs, pavement rehabilitation and funding for upgrades to toll plazas and Tollway facilities.

Preparing for Tomorrow – $485 million for technology investments in active traffic management, back-office system improvements and funding for pilot programs and studies.

[Revive 755]

https://agency.illinoistollway.com/-/illinois-tollway-board-approves-new-7-year-2-billion-dollar-capital-plan

Still nothing for I-90 at I-290/IL 53, but the I-88/I-355 interchange will be getting some work.