By Laura Katauskas | Bugle Staff
Years in the making, a plan to facilitate traffic at Weber Road and Interstate 55 will stay on track as legislation to keep the project moving recently passed.
The new law will allow Will County to acquire land needed for reconstruction of the I-55 interchange and Weber Road corridor. Without it, it is estimated that the project could have been delayed for years.
State Sen. Jennifer Bertino-Tarrant, D-Shorewood, sponsored the initiative in the Senate and the move passed July 22. House Bill 1191 is effective immediately.
“By giving Will County the green light to move forward with construction, we will improve traffic congestion and address safety concerns at the I-55/Weber Road interchange,” Bertino-Tarrant said. “Local governments, as well as the Illinois Department of Transportation are working together to do what’s best for motorists.”
The law allows Will County to acquire 18 parcels of land for the purpose of reconstructing a portion of Weber Road between Normantown Road and 135th Street. According to Bertino-Tarrant, currently, the land has been largely undeveloped for commercial use adjoining strip malls and other commercial spaces near the highway. It does not include any single-family residences, and the reconstruction plan would not remove any existing commercial parking facilities.
Discussion began in 2010 regarding the stretch of I-55 through Bolingbrook and Romeoville that is considered the busiest in Will County. The Weber Road interchange currently serves more than 40,000 vehicles per day.
The project will include widening Weber Road to six lanes between 119th and 135th streets and the building of a new “diverging diamond” interchange with I-55 that will allow motorists faster access to and from the interstate.
The nearly $70 million project is split between the Illinois Department of Transportation and Will County and ensuring that the two agencies work in tandem is critical. IDOT is the lead agency from 119th to Normantown Road and Will County is the lead agency from Normantown to 135th Street.
Acquiring the land is necessary for being able to move forward with the diverging diamond interchange project.
According to engineers, the “diverging diamond” concept is relatively new but has been used with good results. This particular stretch of Weber Road also has the county’s highest accident rate. The diverging diamond is expected to create a safer way to move traffic flow more freely, basically eliminating left-hand turns which are the most common cause of an accident, according to IDOT.
With the majority of drivers headed to and from Chicago, the diverging diamond will allow motorists a free flow of traffic to get on and off the interstate without any stopping. Drivers traveling along Weber Road will essentially crisscross to the other side of the road to continue along.
According to IDOT, the operational benefits result in a morning delay reduced by 91 percent northbound on Weber; 39 percent southbound Weber; and afternoon delay reduced by 61 percent on northbound Weber; and 42 percent southbound Weber.
“This project has been in the works for years to ensure Will County has the tools it needs to reduce traffic and keep motorists using the I-55/Weber Road interchange safe. I am glad to see it move forward and I look forward to the completion of the project,” said Bertino-Tarrant.
The project also is expected to create 400 jobs.
“Not only is today’s news good for local drivers, but it’s good for our economy,” Bertino-Tarrant said. “This project will create hundreds of much-needed construction jobs right here in Will County.”
Will County and IDOT anticipate construction to begin in the spring of 2017.