Illiana Expressway

[Brandon]

How about an even 'I-x80' number?

No, it would never get that as it would never connect to I-80 at any point.  This isn't New York or the Bay Area.

[Brandon]

What is the latest on IL 53, including article links, if you can find any?  I am aware that this proposal has *SOLID* support in the rest of Lake County outside of Long Grove.

Once the IL 53 extension is built, then we can focus on extending the west leg past McHenry and Richmond, IL to feed into US 12 at the Wisconsin state line.    As the City of McHenry has been growing in recent years, the northwest leg's dedicated and preserved ROW has become increasingly visible on the high-res air images of the area.  (Isn't McHenry County, IL the most populous in the USA without any direct access to a freeway/tollway of any kind?)

McHenry County is the only county in Chicagoland with any freeway/tollway access.  US-12 stops in Walworth County, and I-90 has no interchanges in the county (just a toll plaza).  Even Kendall County has half of an interchange with I-80.

[3467]

The Fox Valley was to have paralled 31 and Merged with the 53 extension. McHenery didnt want it .
Now a 4 laning of part of US 14 and IL 47 is funded and some widenings along 31 are under study
Mc Henery has succeeded in limiting sprawl in the west Kane Wanst to do the same
Will,Kendall Grundy and LaSalle want growth It might as well go where it is wanted

[Brandon]

Back in the news again.

Governors agree to partner on Illiana Expressway
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/ct-met-illiana-expressway-0610-20100609,0,6720268.story

[3467]

I expect they would seek to give it an interstate number that has been Illinois past history

I have more inof for those interested in route 53 extension. IDOT moved the Richmond ByPass into local projects from state projects.
The funding was for Land I recall. I think this means IDOT is getting out of anything with a new alignment dumping primary responsability on counties the tollway and so on

[3467]

http://thecapitolfaxblog.com/2010/06/10/question-of-the-day-967/#comments

Some more comment on Illiana the road and the states

[Brandon]

I expect they would seek to give it an interstate number that has been Illinois past history

I have more inof for those interested in route 53 extension. IDOT moved the Richmond ByPass into local projects from state projects.
The funding was for Land I recall. I think this means IDOT is getting out of anything with a new alignment dumping primary responsability on counties the tollway and so on

IDOT has no money to do anything right now.  On the other hand, the Tollway is fairly flush by comparison.  I strongly suspect that any new freeway building here will be done by ISTHA, not IDOT.  And yes, it will probably get an interstate number even as a tollway (I-355 is a precident in Illinois).

[3467]

http://www.chicagobusiness.com/section/blogs?blogID=greg-hinz&plckController=Blog&plckScript=blogScript&plckElementId=blogDest&plckBlogPage=BlogViewPost&plckPostId=Blog%3a1daca073-2eab-468e-9f19-ec177090a35cPost%3a0d8598a4-694a-4928-a3d1-6d365b4a7bc9&sid=sitelife.chicagobusiness.com

At the bottom of this blog is an item about a bill that would allow Will County to build toll roads. The Illinan allready has legilative approval so this bill is  separate but seems to aniticapte some Illiana related growth.
There is more on the Illiana in the tollway link in the IL 53 thread

[Brandon]

Check out the picture from this article.  It shows the corridor for the Illiana Expressway!

http://heraldnews.suntimes.com/news/5610399-417/new-tollway-rep.-needed

[Rick Powell]

Check out the picture from this article.  It shows the corridor for the Illiana Expressway!

http://heraldnews.suntimes.com/news/5610399-417/new-tollway-rep.-needed

The "real" Environmental Impact study for the Illiana has just begun, and they are not to the point where an alternative has been selected, or what it will be or look like.  There have been a lot of conceptual routes looked at by various groups and studies.  The only thing for sure is, there will NOT be a new highway through the Midewin Prairie as it is prohibited by federal law. 

[mukade]

"A task force mapping out routes for the proposed Illiana Expressway has come up with eight proposed road corridors stretching from Interstate 65 in Indiana to Interstate 55 in Illinois."

Read more from NWI Times: Group maps eight routes for Illiana Expressway

Interesting that the potential routes go from Joliet to south of Kankakee on the Illinois side and Merrillville to Lowell on the Indiana side.

[Revive 755]

Interesting that the potential routes go from Joliet to south of Kankakee on the Illinois side and Merrillville to Lowell on the Indiana side.

The map has the label for Kankakee in the wrong place; the southernmost corridor still stays a couple miles north of the main area of Kankakee.

[triplemultiplex]

Would it make too much sense to pick one of the corridors that would easily serve the proposed/fantasy new airport?  You know, just in case they actually follow through with that.

The "Kankakee" with the yellow background is the label for a county.  It has the same style treatment as the labels for Will County, IL and Lake County, IN.

[Brandon]

"A task force mapping out routes for the proposed Illiana Expressway has come up with eight proposed road corridors stretching from Interstate 65 in Indiana to Interstate 55 in Illinois."

Read more from NWI Times: Group maps eight routes for Illiana Expressway

Interesting that the potential routes go from Joliet to south of Kankakee on the Illinois side and Merrillville to Lowell on the Indiana side.

That's because the Will County Board pushed for the Illiana to go west from I-57 to I-55.  It will be needed with the 4th largest port in the US at the Illiana's western end (2 gigantic intermodal freight yards).

[Brandon]

Would it make too much sense to pick one of the corridors that would easily serve the proposed/fantasy new airport?  You know, just in case they actually follow through with that.

The "Kankakee" with the yellow background is the label for a county.  It has the same style treatment as the labels for Will County, IL and Lake County, IN.

I favor a more northerly route, going north of Midewin and north of the proposed airport.  That would best serve the intermodal yards, IMHO, and get traffic off I-80.

[Rick Powell]

The next round of public informational meetings will be posted at www.illianacorridor.org soon.  Look for meetings to occur mid-December in Crown Point and Matteson. 

[Rick Powell]

The next round of public informational meetings will be posted at www.illianacorridor.org soon.  Look for meetings to occur mid-December in Crown Point and Matteson. 

December 13 from 5-8 PM CST at Crown Point IN High School
December 14 from 5-8 PM CST at Matteson IL Conference Center (former Holiday Inn)

[sr641]

I think the illiana expessway should start at i 94 in indiana, connect to i355, then add a northern extension to i355 to connedct it back to i94 in illinois.

[Stratuscaster]

Where at I-94 in Indiana?
Where at I-94 in Illinois?

Why not run it up IL-53 and US-12 to the WI border?

Just asking.

[Brandon]

I think the illiana expessway should start at i 94 in indiana, connect to i355, then add a northern extension to i355 to connedct it back to i94 in illinois.

Not gonna happen.  Daniels agreed not to extend the Illiana east of I-65 due to opposition, and even then it was only to IN-49.  There is nowhere to put it to I-355 without bulldozing acres of houses now.  It's better off going to I-55 as there is a current and future need for it to go there due to the massive amount of intermodal truck traffic from two giant intermodal rail yards off Arsenal Road and I-55.

[Stratuscaster]

At which point you can run it up the Prairie Parkway. Maybe. Possibly.

[Brandon]

At which point you can run it up the Prairie Parkway. Maybe. Possibly.

That's actually one of the ideas I have seen for it.

[Stratuscaster]

I recall I put together a long-since-lost-on-my-local-drives maps of a proposed loop that did all of that. I think I had it starting on the east end at the US-31/IN Toll Road junction, west across I-65 following the Illiana proposal, past the intermodals at I-55, then up to catch the Prairie Parkway and connect with the US-12 freeway at the WI/IL state line.

I think I had suggested to move I-80 to the Illiana, and to renumber the section of I-80 between the Prairie Parkway and US-31 as I-380.

I thought it was snagged and used on a Wikipedia page somewhere - but I can't seem to find it now online.

[WrkHrse]

Here is a narrowed list/map of the proposed routes. The main plan so far is to go from I-65 all the way across to at least I-55.

http://www.arcgis.com/apps/OnePane/basicviewer/index.html?webmap=1ec003710f844571a029af06e01b97dd


Lots more info Here too:

http://www.illianacorridor.org/