Travel Midwest High Priority Announcements
RSS 2.0 News Feed:
Next Phase of Byrne Improvements begins Friday with Closure of Jackson Boulevard over Kennedy
Progress continues this year with several ramp, mainline Kennedy, Ryan improvements
The Illinois Department of Transportation is reminding the public that the next major phase of the Jane Byrne Interchange project will begin with the upcoming closure of the Jackson Boulevard bridge over the Kennedy Expressway (I-90/94). The bridge project marks the first of several traffic impacts this construction season that will result in safer, smoother travel through the interchange.
“This coming year will see significant progress with the reconstruction of the Jane Byrne Interchange, and we look forward to the many improvements to come,” said Acting Illinois Transportation Secretary Omer Osman. “We appreciate the public’s continued patience. We ask that they drop their devices, be on the alert for changes in traffic patterns and give their undivided attention going through this and all other work zones.”
To remove the existing bridge over the expressway, Jackson Boulevard between Halsted Street and Des Plaines Avenue will close starting, weather permitting, at 5 a.m. Friday, March 27.
A detour will direct vehicular traffic east on Jackson Boulevard, south on Halsted Street, east on Van Buren Street and north on Jefferson Street to reconnect with Jackson Boulevard.
Pedestrians should use the Van Buren Street bridge as an alternate route. Bicyclists will be detoured south on Halsted Street, east on Harrison Street and north on Clinton Street to reconnect with Jackson Boulevard.
The Jackson Boulevard entrance ramp to the outbound Kennedy also will close, with a detour directing traffic north on Halsted Street to enter the expressway via Madison Street. The inbound Kennedy exit ramp to Jackson Boulevard will close as well, with motorists directed to exit at Monroe Street and access Jackson Boulevard via Des Plaines Avenue.
The new Jackson Boulevard bridge is expected to open in 2022. The structure will have two lanes and a dedicated bike lane, as well as sidewalks on both sides, enhancing connections and improving safety for all transportation users in the surrounding neighborhoods.
For more information and to view a construction overview video, visit www.janebyrneinterchange.org.
Other significant impacts at the Jane Byrne this year include:
- The outbound Ida B. Wells Drive ramp to the outbound Kennedy was closed this winter and reopens by the end of this year.
- The inbound Eisenhower Expressway (Interstate 290) ramp to the outbound Kennedy will close later this spring and reopen in late 2020. A special detour will utilize the outbound Dan Ryan Expressway (Interstate 90/94) to connect to the Kennedy via the Taylor Street interchange.
- Adams Street over the Kennedy will be closed this summer, the last of the 11 local street bridges at the interchange to be replaced. It reopens in 2022 with Jackson Boulevard.
- Improvements will begin later in 2020 on the mainline lanes of the Kennedy and Dan Ryan through the interchange, which include the construction of new collector-distributor ramps that will relocate the left-hand entrance ramps at Jackson and Adams. Three lanes will remain open in both directions, but traffic will be shifted.
Additional details, schedules and impacts to traffic will be shared in advance, closer to the individual project start dates.
The overall reconstruction project at the Jane Byrne Interchange will improve safety and traffic flow for the more than 400,000 motorists who use it each day, while also enhancing mobility for bicyclists, pedestrians and transit users in the surrounding neighborhoods. For more information and to view a live camera feed of the work zone, visit www.circleinterchange.org.
Recently, IDOT unveiled a new mobile-friendly website that features a detailed project timeline with an interactive map, photo galleries and the ability to submit questions and comments to the project team via a “Contact Us” link. For more information, visit www.janebyrneinterchange.org.
The improved Jane Byrne Interchange will be complete in 2022.
3/26/2020 10:03 AM
(Updated 6/15/2020 8:43 AM)