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Celebrating end of big road project in Round Lake Beach

Complex construction at Rollins Road and Rt. 83 took two years

Years of frustration should be over for thousands of drivers who travel through Rollins Road and Route 83 in Round Lake Beach.

Lake County, local and state-level officials gathered Tuesday afternoon in Round Lake Beach's Gateway Park to celebrate the end of a $33 million, two-year construction project at the intersection.

Round Lake Beach Mayor Richard Hill and Lake County Engineer Paula Trigg alluded to the commuting headaches caused by trains and other problems at that location for about 30 years.

"It's been identified many times as one of the worst intersections in Lake County," Hill said.

"There were many bad accidents here and very tough to get through."

Trigg said the mammoth project's planning started in 2008, followed by construction in 2013. It was billed as the largest and most complex endeavor in Lake County Division of Transportation's 101-year history.

At the centerpiece of the project was construction of a railroad underpass for the new Rollins Road as it approached and went through the intersection with Route 83. As many as 50 commuter and freight trains per day crossed Rollins at grade just west of Route 83, creating frustrating backups.

Illinois Department of Transportation data show 23,800 vehicles travel on Rollins daily west of Route 83 and 20,500 to the east. Route 83 has a daily vehicle volume of 17,700 south of Rollins and 22,000 to the north.

Lake County Board Chairman Aaron Lawlor said scores of businesses in the Rollins-Route 83 corridor will benefit from the revamped intersection.

"Another key thing as we look to address traffic congestion issues and advance our transportation priorities, we also need to see them as not only as transportation projects, but as economic development tools," Lawlor said.

"And by moving traffic through this area, we are going to have the opportunity to alleviate congestion and also provide the opportunity for access for economic development."

Trigg said the Rollins-Route 83 upgrades also will benefit emergency responders.

Drivers now have two through lanes in each direction of Rollins and Route 83. There also are two left-turn lanes and a right-turn lane at each leg of the intersection.

Other highlights include better traffic signs, drainage improvements, fresh landscaping and new sidewalks to shopping centers near the intersection.

An 8-foot-wide multiuse path also was built on the south side of Rollins west of Route 83,

Lake County transportation officials noted a similar project on the same rail line is under way to the south in Grayslake.

Work on the Washington Street railroad underpass, west of Lake Street. and other improvements to the busy thoroughfare should be completed in late 2016.

Rollins railroad crossing closure:

Rollins Road crossing to close

Rollins closure extended

Work to untangle Rollins Road/Route 83 nears

Rollins Gateway work slated for this summer

Rollins Road construction set to begin

Portion of Rollins Road now open

Rollins Road in Round Lake Beach to close for three days

Train traffic no longer an issue on Rollins Road at Route 83

Massive Rollins project going on hiatus

  Lake County Board member Bonnie Thomson Carter speaks Tuesday during an event celebrating the completion of the Rollins Road and Route 83 construction in Round Lake Beach. Steve Lundy/slundy@dailyherald.com
  County board member Bonnie Thomson Carter hugs Round Lake Beach Mayor Richard Hill during Tuesday's event to herald the completion of the Rollins Road and Route 83 construction in Round Lake Beach. Steve Lundy/slundy@dailyherald.com
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