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SPRINGFIELD – The Illinois Department of Transportation is
inviting the public to learn more and comment about proposed
safety and capacity improvements to Illinois 97 west of
Springfield. The proposed $86.5 million project is made possible
by Gov. JB Pritzker’s historic and bipartisan Rebuild Illinois
capital program.
Instead of hosting a regular public meeting, IDOT will share
information on the project and encourage participation through a
website beginning Thursday, Feb. 11. At idot.illinois.gov/projects/il-97-expressway.html,
the public can review project details, view presentations and
provide IDOT with questions. Any comments received before March
1 will become part of the official public record.
The project proposes to realign and expand Illinois 97 to four
lanes from Veterans Parkway to west of the Illinois 97/Illinois
125 junction. The preferred alternative bypasses the town of
Bradfordton to the north and replaces the Sangamon Valley Trail
and Prairie Creek structures. New signalized intersections would
be built at Bradfordton Road and the Illinois 97/Illinois 125
junction. Construction is tentatively scheduled to start in the
middle years of IDOT’s current FY21-26 multiyear plan and will
take approximately four years to complete.
The improvements are necessary due to congestion, crash history
and frequency, as well as flooding at Prairie Creek. Planning
for project began in the 1990s but was only able to advance to
the design and construction phases once funding was identified
with the passage of Rebuild Illinois in 2019.
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, which is investing $33.2
billion into all modes of transportation. Year One included
approximately $2.7 billion of improvements statewide on 1,706
miles of highway and 128 bridges along with 228 additional
safety improvements.
For IDOT District 6 updates, follow us on Twitter at
@IDOTDistrict6. You also can follow IDOT on Facebook and
Twitter.
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