More railroad crossing work scheduled in Grayslake
While Route 120 in Grayslake is expected to reopen Wednesday night at a railroad crossing that's been closed due to repairs, drivers should brace for similar work a few blocks away.
Orange-and-black signs call attention to the Canadian National Railroad's plan to shut the Route 83 crossing for routine track repairs starting at 6 a.m. Monday, Aug. 18. The shutdown will last 10 days.
During the Route 83 closure in Grayslake, northbound traffic will be detoured west on Peterson Road and north on Alleghany Road. From there, drivers will go east on Route 120 before reconnecting to northbound Route 83.
Southbound Route 83 drivers will be detoured west on Route 120 and south on Alleghany. The detour will go east on Peterson and back to southbound Route 83.
Lake County and state transportation officials said the CN track repairs should be finished in time for the Route 83 crossing to reopen at 6 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 27.
The good news for commuters in Grayslake is the CN crossing on Route 120, immediately west of Route 83, is expected to reopen at 6 p.m. Wednesday after 10 days of track repair. Route 120 is a major east-west route in Lake County.
Kevin Timony, assistant to the village manager in Grayslake, said similar to the track work at Route 120, next week's closure of the Route 83 crossing will be an inconvenience for commuters.
"However, we do not see this causing any major issues and understand that these types of repairs need to occur from time to time," Timony said.
About 7,250 vehicles per day use Route 83 south of CN's tracks in Grayslake, according to a 2013 Illinois Department of Transportation traffic count. About 15,700 vehicles per day travel on Route 83 north of the railroad tracks at Route 120.
Nearly four dozen freight and Metra commuter trains use the tracks through Grayslake daily, according to CN.
Timony said officials did not see any significant traffic problems from the Route 120 closure, nor were any complaints logged at village hall.