The Illinois Department of Transportation announced today that the three right lanes of eastbound I-55/64, as well as the ramp to southbound IL-3 and the ramp to southbound Tudor Avenue in East St. Louis will close as early as April 1, weather permitting.
 
The closures are necessary to replace the bridge decks on eastbound I-55/64. Lane closures will be in place in this area until early October.
 
The ramp from northbound Piggott Avenue to eastbound I-55/64, which was closed Feb. 22, will remain closed.
 
In Missouri, the Marion Street entrance ramp to northbound I-55 as well as the right lane of northbound I-55 approaching the Poplar Street Bridge will be closed. I-64 will also be reduced to one lane approaching the Poplar Street Bridge.
 
Extensive delays are expected during weekday evening rush hours. The public is urged to plan accordingly and use alternate routes, including the I-70 Stan Musial Veterans Memorial Bridge. Carpooling and using public transportation, following public health guidelines, are encouraged as well.
 
Drivers must pay close attention to changing conditions and signs in the work zones, obey the posted speed limits, refrain from using mobile devices and be alert for workers and equipment.
 
The closures are part of a $29.8 million project, funded by Rebuild Illinois, to rehabilitate the bridges in this area. The overall project will require various lane closures, with updated information provided in advance of each new traffic configuration.  
 
Over the next six years, IDOT is planning to improve more than 3,300 miles of highway and 8.4 million square feet of bridge deck as part of the Rebuild Illinois capital program, which is investing in all modes of transportation. Year One included improvements statewide on 1,706 miles of highway, 128 bridges and 228 additional safety improvements.

The Minnesota Department of Transportation today announced that the I-35W@94: Downtown to Crosstown project is complete, with all lanes and ramps expected to reopen by Friday evening, Sept. 10.

“To the residents of Minneapolis, the local businesses, and all Minnesotans who travel on I-35W and I-94, we want to say thank you for patience,” said MnDOT Commissioner Margaret Anderson Kelliher. “From better pedestrian bridges and improved transit options to new E-ZPass lanes, new ramps and rebuilt bridges, this work will benefit everyone who lives, walks, bikes, uses transit or drives in the area – and with the help of our partners, this project finished on-time and on-budget.”

The four-year, $239 million project included partnerships with Hennepin County, city of Minneapolis and the Metropolitan Council.

Crews rebuilt 2.5 miles of freeway between 43rd Street and I-94; rebuilt and repaired bridges; added access from southbound I-35W to a rebuilt Lake Street, providing a connection to businesses; and added a ramp from northbound I-35W to 28th Street.

They also rebuilt the ramp from I-35W north to I-94 west, including a dedicated lane for motorists seeking to continue through the Lowry Tunnel.

Metro Transit built a transit station at 31st and Lake streets that is a centerpiece of the Orange Line bus service that launches later this year and will provide faster bus service into downtown Minneapolis.

A southbound E-ZPass lane has been added for vehicles with at least two occupants, motorcyclists and single-occupancy vehicles willing to pay for a more efficient drive during peak hours.

Walkers and bikers have improved paths and bridges, including new 24th and 40th street bridges that are wider and more accessible. The Green Crescent provides walking and biking access from Midtown Greenway and Lake Street and offers a beautiful green space for people to enjoy.

Crews replaced aging bridges at 26th Street, 38th Street and Franklin Avenue.

This marks the end of a process that started with planning two decades ago and involved input from many organizations, groups and neighborhoods.

Ames, Lunda and Shafer served as the contractors in a joint partnership.

The project started in August 2017.

For more details about the project, visit http://www.dot.state.mn.us/35w94/.

For real-time travel information anywhere in Minnesota, visit www.511mn.org or dial 5-1-1.

Concrete beam deliveries escorted by State Police will impact travel on I-90, I-294

Transport and delivery of bridge beams are scheduled to continue in September for the Illinois Tollway’s new southbound Mile Long Bridge on the Central Tri-State Tollway (I-294). Delivery of new concrete and steel beams for the Mile Long Bridge Project is anticipated to continue through early 2022.

During the month of September, 75 concrete beams from a Wisconsin manufacturing plant and 11 steel beam segments from a Kentucky manufacturing plant are expected to be delivered.

Transport trucks with the concrete beams will be escorted by Illinois State Police and will be traveling at a low rate of speed typically between hours of 4 a.m. and noon on weekdays, however some concrete beam transport will be scheduled during overnight hours to accommodate BNSF Railway schedules. The steel beams will not require a State Police escort and the times of deliveries will vary. All deliveries are weather dependent and schedules will be available on Daily Construction Alerts posted on the Tollway’s website.

Throughout September, 53 precast, prestressed concrete beams will be delivered to the construction site. Each of the beams weighing approximately 115 tons and measuring up to 7.5 feet tall and up to 187 feet long will be transported from Wisconsin traveling eastbound on the Jane Addams Memorial Tollway (I-90) to southbound I-294 to the construction site.

The trucks with the beams will be parked along the southbound Mile Long Bridge and concrete beams will be installed over the BNSF Railway and the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago.

In addition, in late September delivery of steel beam segments is scheduled to begin. Each of the steel segments, measuring up to 10 feet tall and up to 134 feet long, will be transported from Kentucky through Indiana and then travel northbound on the Tri-State Tollway (I-294/I-80) to the work zone.

After delivery to the construction site, the steel beam segments will be combined to make 52 up beams installed over the County Forest Preserve District property and the Chicago Sanitary & Ship Canal.

Altogether 250 concrete beams and 165 steel beam segments will be delivered to the site for the new southbound Mile Long Bridge Project during the course of the project
 

As part of the Central Tri-State Tollway Project, the Illinois Tollway is reconstructing the Mile Long Bridge that carries up to 150,000 vehicles daily over two major railroads, the Des Plaines River, the Chicago Sanitary & Ship Canal and the Illinois & Michigan Canal and local roads, and over several major distribution centers. Construction of the new northbound structure was completed in 2020 and construction of the new southbound structure is scheduled to be complete in 2022.

A  contract to build the new northbound bridge structure began in summer 2019 and was completed in November 2020. Work began on a second million contract in 2020 to remove the old northbound structure and deliver the new southbound Mile Long Bridge to drivers by the end of 2022. The entire Mile Long Bridge Project is scheduled to be complete by the end of 2023.

The Mile Long Bridge Project includes building two, new side-by-side 4,800-foot-long bridge structures designed to last 100 years and increasing capacity to five lanes in each direction. The original bridge structures were built in 1958.

Both of the new bridges feature 27 spans supported by 26 piers, compared to the previous structures with 53 piers, reducing the impact on waterways, roadway and rail operations below. In addition, the bridges’ inside shoulders in both directions will be built to serve as Flex Lanes for transit, for emergency vehicles and as an alternate lane when warranted.

The Illinois Tollway is coordinating work on the Mile Long Bridge Project with the Village of Hodgkins, Village of Countryside, Village of Willow Springs, Village of Justice, Cook County, Forest Preserve District of Cook County, Metropolitan Water Reclamation District, Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway, Illinois Department of Transportation, Illinois Environmental Protection Agency, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, U.S. Department of Fish and Wildlife, U.S. Coast Guard, Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR), IDNR Office of Water Resources and the Illinois Nature Preserve Commission, as well as numerous businesses located near the Mile Long Bridge.

Construction information about the Mile Long Bridge Project and the Central Tri-State Tollway (I-294) Project is available in the “Projects Section on the Tollway’s website at illinoistollway.com.


 

FOR CENTRAL TRI-STATE TOLLWAY (I-294) PROJECT
I-55 lane closures and ramps connecting I-294 and I-55 needed through September for bridge beam placement

Overnight lane closures on I-55, along with nightly ramp closures will be scheduled through September to accommodate bridge beam placement on I-55 as part of the Central Tri-State Tollway (I-294) Project.

Beginning Tuesday, August 31, two nights of lane closures are needed on northbound I-55 at I-294. One northbound lane on I-55 is scheduled to close at 9 p.m., followed by a second lane at midnight. All lanes are scheduled to reopen by 5 a.m. each following morning.

Following the Labor Day holiday, nightly closures on I-55 along with closure and detour of the ramp connecting southbound I-294 to northbound I-55 are scheduled to begin Tuesday, September 7, with up to seven nights of closures anticipated. The overnight ramp and lane closures are scheduled to begin at 11 p.m. and reopen by 4 a.m. each following morning.

During the closures, a detour will be posted routing southbound I-294 traffic through the interchange ramps at Countyline Road back on to northbound I-294 to access northbound I-55