Chicago Construction News staff writer
The Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) says 236 contracts for highway and bridge projects were accepted at its June letting, a potential investment of more than $910.4 million in infrastructure in communities across Illinois. It’s the largest monthly total in the department’s history, fueled by Gov. Pritzker’s, bipartisan Rebuild Illinois program.
A total of 38 contracts bid on were in excess of $5 million. For fiscal year 2023, IDOT has awarded 785 contracts worth more than $2.5 billion in highway and bridge improvements.
Significant contracts include:
- $55.4 million to reconstruct Interstate 80 with capacity improvements between Minooka in Kendall County to I-55 in Will County.
- $18.7 million to reconstruct the interchange of Illinois 31 and U.S. 20 in Elgin.
- $20.5 million to reconstruct 1.2 miles of Illinois 7 (Southwest Highway) from 131st Street to south of 135th Street in Orland Park.
- $14.4 million to replace the approach and deck of the bridge and other repairs to Illinois 83 (127th Street) over the Cal Sag Channel in Crestwood and Alsip.
- $755,753 to resurface Pulaski Road from I-290 (Eisenhower Expressway) to Cermak Road in Chicago.
- $1.4 million to repair the bridge from I-55 northbound to the Chinatown Feeder in Chicago.
- $4.1 million to convert the intersection of Illinois 394 and Burville Road in unincorporated Crete Township into a Restricted Crossing U-Turn (RCUT).
- $98.8 million to reconstruct the I-39 and U.S. 20 interchange in Rockford.
- $28.8 million to resurface I-74 from north of Illinois 17 in Henry County to U.S. 34 in Knox County.
- $7.3 million to replace the bridges carrying I-57 over U.S. 45 near Pesotum in Champaign County.
- $68.9 million to build Brush College Road bridge over the Norfolk Southern Railroad and Fairies Parkway in Decatur.
- $11.5 million to patch and resurface, replace sidewalks, curbs and gutters as well as install new signals on Illinois 121 from I-72 to Illinois 48 in Decatur.
- $44.3 million to build two bridges on Iron Bridge Road and Woodside Road in Sangamon County.
- $24.5 million for patching, improving drainage and resurfacing 8 miles of U.S. 51 from the DeWitt County line to north of Forsyth Road in Forsyth.
- $15.2 million to resurface 10 miles of Illinois 255 from Illinois 142 and Seminary Road in the Metro East.
- $36.8 million to resurface 12.7 miles of I-57 from north of Illinois 146 to the Williamson/Johnson county line.
- $21.6 million to patch and resurface 13 miles of I-24 from I-57 to north of U.S. 45 in Vienna. Work includes repairs to five bridges and painting of two bridges.
Passed in 2019, Rebuild Illinois is investing $33.2 billion into the state’s aging transportation system, creating jobs and promoting economic growth. Rebuild Illinois is not only the largest capital program in state history but also the first one that touches all modes of Illinois transportation: roads and bridges, transit, waterways, freight and passenger rail, aviation, and bicycle and pedestrian accommodations.
The record investment in Illinois infrastructure likewise is made possible by the federal Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, which passed in late 2021. Illinois is estimated to receive about $17.8 billion in combined infrastructure funding over five years, almost $16 billion of which will be invested across all modes of transportation. An estimated $9.8 billion will go to highway investment, with another $1.4 billion dedicated to bridge replacement and repairs.
