Hello, AARoads Forum!

[sandwalk]

Just wanted to say hey.  I've been familiar with AARoads.com and just happened to stumble across the forum through a Google search about a transportation article.  I figured this forum is something that I'd enjoy being a part of.

For what it's worth, I am originally from Ohio (Sandusky area), lived there from birth until 2006.  I moved to northern Illinois for college and am currently living and working in Rockford, Illinois.  I know a lot of people see Rockford as separate from Chicago but honestly I've never viewed it that way (probably because I'm not a native Illinoisan).  Rockford is an integral part of northern Illinois and the transportation planning that goes on in the RTA counties and their neighboring counties should definitely look at the broader region (Rockford, Kankakee, DeKalb, NW Indiana, SE Wisconsin, etc.) in terms of planning (roads, rail, business incentives, etc.).  It's my hope to someday be able to live in the city of Chicago, or perhaps closer to home in Cleveland or Columbus......and hopefully have better access to these locales by a greater transportation network.

Anyway, not to get off topic.....LOL.....but browsing through the the different topics (fictional roads, regional topics, etc.) is great!  I'm loving it already!

So yeah, thanks for having me 

[Hot Rod Hootenanny]

Greetings from back in Ohio. SW corner of Morrow County to be precise.

[Brandon]

Heh.  The RTA (and IDOT District 1 for that matter) is a bit myopic from this Jolietan's point of view.  They seem to care more about Cook and DuPage Counties and forget about the rest of the area.  Being from here, we (Joliet, Kankakee, Rockford, DeKalb) do tend to view ourselves as independent from Chicago.  Ask someone from Naperville, and they'll say they're from Chicago.  Ask someone from Rockford, and they'll say they're from Rockford.