* Capitol News Illinois…
The Illinois Department of Transportation unveiled a plan on Friday for spending nearly $41 billion in federal, state and local funds over the next six years to repair and upgrade roads, bridges, airports, rail lines and other infrastructure throughout the state.
The latest version of the plan, which IDOT updates annually, is the largest multiyear plan in state history. It’s driven by the state’s 2019 Rebuild Illinois capital infrastructure program. The initial six-year Rebuild Illinois plan included $33.2 billion for transportation, funded largely by annualized increases to the state’s motor fuel tax and increases to driving-related licensing fees that took effect in 2020.
“Over the next six years, we’re investing over $40 billion to improve all modes of transportation across our great state,” Gov. JB Pritzker said at a news conference in Springfield. “And that means better roads and bridges, modernized transit and aviation, and expanded and faster passenger rail service. It even extends to improved river ports, new sewers and water infrastructure and a huge upgrade to bicycle and pedestrian accommodations.”
More than half of the plan, $27 billion, will go toward road and bridge projects, including $4.6 billion in the current fiscal year. That will fund repair and reconstruction of 2,866 miles of roadway and 9.8 million square feet of bridge deck on the state highway system, along with another 738 miles of roadway and 1.1 million square feet of bridge deck in systems maintained by local governments.
Click here for the full list of projects.
* A breakdown from IDOT…
* The Metro East will be allotted $3 billion. St. Louis Public Radio…
In the Metro East, Illinois Route 3 in St. Clair County will get the most funding at $305.5 million, according to IDOT plans. The project includes grading and paving the 4-mile stretch from Monsanto Ave. in Sauget to River Park Drive in East St. Louis.
A 2.7-mile stretch of I-55 and I-64 in East St. Louis will receive $288.3 million for the Poplar Street Bridge and road repairs from the Mississippi River to the I-64 interchange. […]
The third priciest project will be $245 million to replace the Joe Page Bridge in Hardin, Illinois, which stretches across the Illinois River about 60 miles north of St. Louis.
In both Monroe and St. Clair counties, a nearly 21-mile portion of I-255 will undergo $188.3 million in bridge repairs and replacement. The project starts near Columbia, Illinois, city limits and extends all the way north to Cahokia Heights.
I-64 in Washington County will get $112 million for resurfacing and bridge repairs over a 20-mile section about 5 miles east of Okawville, Illinois, to the Jefferson County line.
* WGEM…
Projects are already underway and everything will be done by June 2029. […]
Quincy is receiving $156 million to replace the Memorial Bridge.
Adams County will receive $15.2 million to resurface 4.2 miles, replace traffic signals, ADA improvements and other improvements from 12th Street to I-172.
Hancock County is set to receive $19.3 million to for vertical realignment on 0.8 mile, bridge replacement, railroad crossing improvements and other improvements from the Mississippi River to Main Street in Hamilton.
$29.3 million will be distributed to McDonough, Fulton and Knox Counties to resurface 11.7 miles and utility adjustments from Illinois 116 to Illinois 9.
* SJ-R…
Sangamon County, along with Adams, Hancock and Logan counties, will be beneficiaries to the $1.7 billion in improvements coming to the district between fiscal year 2024 and fiscal year 2029. Coffey estimated more than $280 million of that will benefit Sangamon County.
Most of the projects are receiving similar amounts of funding as seen in the latest multi-year plan announced last August, another six-year, $34.6 billion plan. That includes the continued work a 7.8-mile stretch from Sangamon Avenue to 2.7 miles south of Illinois 123, now valued at $125.9 million instead of the earlier $124.2 million.
Bridge repairs and resurfacing on Interstate 55 to the sum of $21.6 million will also proceed between 6.2 miles of Illinois 104 to Horse Farm Road.
Outside of I-55, there are two projects at the Illinois 97/125 junction and MacArthur Boulevard. The 1.5-mile area on MacArthur between Wabash Avenue and South Grand Avenue will replace traffic signals and make Americans with Disabilities Act improvements for $20 million, down from $28 million in last year’s plan. […]
Perhaps the most noted change in funding comes to the I-55 business area south of Stanford Avenue on Sixth Street. A total of $68.6 million, up from $40 million, will feed into 3.9 miles of reconstruction including additional lanes, intersection improvement, turning lanes, sidewalks, traffic signal replacement, bikeway and utility adjustments.
* Transit Mag…
The $40.99 billion Fiscal Year (FY) 2024-29 Proposed Highway and Multimodal Improvement Program will target investments that include:
• $27.03 billion in roads and bridges
• $9.85 billion for transit
• $2.67 billion for freight and passenger rail
• $1.25 billion for aviation
• $190 million for ports and waterways
[…] The Rebuild Illinois capital program created three new transit funding programs: The Multimodal Transportation Bond Fund, the Regional Transportation Authority Capital Improvement Fund and the Downstate Mass Transportation Capital Improvement Fund. This past January, IDOT awarded $113.8 million in capital grants to downstate transit providers (those outside the Chicago region) as part of the third and final round of Rebuild Illinois Multimodal Transportation Bond and Pay-Go Funds.
The proposed program also notes the importance of passenger rail as part of a balanced transportation system. The proposal points to the recent growth passenger rail travel in Illinois has experienced as an indicator of why more investment is needed. The six-year capital program includes $1.58 billion for maintenance, safety repairs and other capital improvements of the state’s passenger rail systems. This amount includes $242 million for the Illinois High-Speed Rail Project between Chicago and St. Louis, which started operating 110 mph trains last month. Additional passenger rail corridors earmarked for funding include Chicago to Quad Cities, Chicago to Rockford and Chicago to Carbondale.
* Related…
* Stacker | Counties with the most bridges in dire need of repair in Illinois: Stacker investigated which counties in Illinois have the most bridges in dire need of repair using data from the Federal Highway Administration. The data is accurate as of June 15, 2022. Counties are ranked by percent of bridges in “poor” condition and ties are broken by percent square meters of bridges in poor condition. Counties that have no bridges or have no bridges in poor condition are excluded from the list.
* Streets Blog | I want you to want commuter rail: Pritzker announces $275M award to Metra to restore Rockford-Chicago train service: One sobering aspect of today’s announcement is that a mere two roundtrips a day are currently planned. Hopefully that skimpy schedule will be expanded, because it would discourage ridership.
* Streets Blog | Take a look at the “Transportation” chapter of Mayor Johnson’s “2023 Mayoral Transition Report”: According to the initial intro to the document, “Nearly 400 Chicagoans, representing a wealth of diverse perspectives, served on 11 transition committees that offered robust ideas and recommendations for Mayor Brandon Johnson’s administration.” Transportation was one of these groups. “They represent an unprecedented diversity of voices and perspectives—including diversity based on race, gender, generation, income level and neighborhood, and with representatives from business, civic, social justice and community-based organizations.” Sounds like a good approach.
* WAND | New Illinois law requires IDOT mobile app for road conditions: “I don’t believe it will cost millions of dollars,” Ammons said. “It will cost them a little effort for them to recruit a student who is in engineering, who is in computer science, in order to create this app and to maintain it if they want to do that.”
- Huh? - Monday, Jul 10, 23 @ 12:19 pm:
There have been some recent funding developments that will help reduce the number of deficit bridges. The Township Bridge Program funding was raised from $15 million to $60 million. This is an economic adjustment to account for inflation from 1979 when the funding was set at $15 million.
The other bit of funding news is the FHWA has a new program to fund what are called “off-system bridges”. These are bridges are located on roads with a functional classification of collector and local roads. Previously, these bridges were not eligible for FHWA funding.
- Incandenza - Monday, Jul 10, 23 @ 2:32 pm:
This is one of the Governor’s greatest opportunities for a green agenda, especially a few days after the hottest 3 days globally were just recorded. Almost any expansion of highway projects is inducing demand for vehicles, which whether electric or not, result in pollution in the form or particulate matter.
In order to combat climate change, electrifying Metra and passenger rail would go a long way. Also, just adding frequency to the existing passenger rail lines would take cars off the highway.
Transportation is one of the greatest places to combat climate change.