Started out the day being greeted by this VMS with the message "I-80 EB Closed at Mississippi River". Had to turn around and trudge southward along the real I-74 eastbound, which was equally under construction for an ARRA based resurfacing project. A routine inspection revealed damage to a faulty floor beam and currently only one lane of westbound traffic is permitted to use the bridge due to [...]
Almost devoid of snow, U.S. 61 northbound after its split with U.S. 67 in downtown Davenport, Iowa. A full day of rain washed most of the snow away, but it would return with a vengeance later Christmas day. More snow fell then forecast, with the Quad Cities area receiving 3 to 4 inches. This photo, taken at 7:47 am, shows the condition of Interstate 74 near Exit [...]
Took an afternoon drive from the Quad Cities up to Dubuque and back utilizing portions of the Great River Road system. U.S. 30 joins U.S. 61's freeway briefly at DeWitt, Iowa. The exit numbering of the U.S. 61 interchanges shifts to U.S. 30's mileage along their shared alignment U.S. 61 varies between a four-lane freeway and four-lane expressway between Interstate 80 and its merge with [...]
Continuing the drive north from Sikeston to the Quad Cities, clouds dominated the day, and from Springfield northward, snow flakes joined the fray. Generally traveled northward along Interstate 55, with a loop onto the new I-64, I-270, and I-255 around St. Louis. Took Interstate 155 to Interstates 74/474 to the Quad Cities in light snow. Saw a pair of cars dislodged from the road, one of which was wrapped in [...]
What began as a local river crossing in 1935, the Interstate 74 & U.S. 6 bridges (Iowa-Illinois Memorial Bridge) across the Mississippi River between Moline and Davenport are reaching the end of their life span. Though never built to Interstate standards, the 1935-northbound bridge and 1959-built southbound span were added to the Interstate system in 1974. Each suspension bridge carries two lanes without left or right-hand shoulders. The safety issues [...]
Peoria includes two Interstates, the main route through the city, I-74, and the bypass route, I-474. Lets take a look at the two and more... Interstate 74 cuts a swath through the downtown area, meandering along a curved path from junction Interstate 474 & Illinois 6 northwest of the city to a brief depressed section of freeway near the central business district. A high-level cantilever bridge carries the freeway across [...]
Dubbed the Congestion Relief Project, the Illinois Tollway system, an integral part of Chicagoland's highway network, is a series of construction projects aimed at modernizing and expanding the multiple-route system in northern Illinois. The overall project was approved in September 2004. Interstate 355 northbound at Illinois 171. One of the main aspects of the project was the modernization of the 20 main line toll collecting facilities. Work [...]
For those keeping track, add Illinois to the states that have adopted Clearview font on their highway signs. An informal list of states using the font include: Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Texas in essentially all new sign installations Virginia, Kentucky, Arkansas, Florida, Vermont, California and now Illinois that sporadically use Clearview. Interstate 57 north and 70 east approaching their split. Even the Interstate shields include Clearview numbers. Thanks goes to Kerrie Field [...]
Interstate 355 (Veterans Memorial Tollway) opens to traffic on Monday November 12, 2007 between Interstates 80 and 55. The 12.5-mile freeway was built in three years after more than 10 years of delays caused by legal and funding issues. The 2005 toll increases throughout the Illinois Tollway network helped pay for completion of the $738 million route that includes a 1.25-mile Des Plaines River Valley bridge, the second longest span in the state. [...]
