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Accidents create need for changes at Gurnee tollway exit

Bill Bertram frequently felt uneasy as cars whizzed past while he waited in traffic to reach the Tri-State Tollway's Grand Avenue exit ramp in Gurnee in the months after a $19.4 million reconstruction project was completed in 2015.

Thoughts of being a sitting duck for a rear-end crash crossed his mind. Still, the 59-year-old Round Lake Beach resident said, driving north on the tollway to the westbound exit ramp was the most efficient option to head home from his Evanston job.

On Nov. 16, at about 5:15 p.m., the rear-end crash he worried about happened.

Bertram was stuck in a traffic jam in a 2011 Ford Fusion when he was hit by a 2010 Ford Transit Connect van three-quarters of a mile from the exit ramp, according to Illinois State Police. His car was totaled in the four-vehicle, chain-reaction crash that seriously injured him and a 66-year-old passenger from Lindenhurst.

"People who see my car say, 'Wow, I can't believe you're alive,'" said Bertram, who is coping with the injuries to his back, neck, left shoulder, elbow and wrist.

In September, eight people were injured when a big rig crashed into seven vehicles stuck in traffic trying to reach the same congested ramp, state police said.

Critics contend that the ramp has been plagued by frequently long, dangerous backups since the eastbound Grand Avenue exit ramp was improved in the two-year project that ended in 2015. They say not enough room for all the vehicles to use the one lane feeding the westbound ramp has led to the pileups at the interchange that carries vehicles to several popular tourist attractions.

However, after some study, the Illinois State Toll Highway Authority says it now plans to improve the westbound Grand Avenue exit in a construction project this summer. Tollway spokesman Dan Rozek said the work will involve extending a barrier wall to improve northbound traffic flow to both Grand Avenue exits.

The wall will separate vehicles exiting westbound from the rest of the I-94 traffic and block drivers from cutting in front of the line and creating the congestion. Currently, the wall separates traffic exiting onto the eastbound Grand Avenue ramp from the rest of the toll road, Rozek said.

Gurnee Mayor Kristina Kovarik said the town was informed about the tollway's plans this fall. The village draws millions of visitors annually for Gurnee Mills, Six Flags Great America and KeyLime Cove Indoor Waterpark Resort.

"Whether you're going east- or westbound (to Grand), you're going to be on the other side of that wall," Kovarik said of the new configuration. "Because the problem - and I'm not an engineer, but I drive it myself every day - is not the ramp. It's people who hug lanes and cause everybody to stop. And so the traffic can't move smoothly."

Traffic reviews

The 2015 interchange improvement project allowed northbound drivers to veer to the right in two dedicated lanes for the eastbound Grand Avenue exit, which is used for Great America, and is separated from the other four lanes by a barrier wall. Rozek said the eastbound ramp also was lengthened and widened as part of the project.

The tollway has since reviewed traffic patterns and concluded extending that wall will improve traffic flow and safety for drivers heading to the westbound exit ramp without compromising the benefits achieved for the eastbound exit, Rozek said. The work is expected to be finished this year, although no final cost has been determined.

Currently, drivers trying to reach the westbound ramp are part of mainline traffic and should be in a lane closest to the wall. Congestion and safety problems are caused when traffic from the other three tollway lanes cut toward the westbound exit.

Tollway officials say there are safety measures in place to alert drivers to congestion around Grand Avenue.

Rozek said a traffic queue detection system is activated to alert northbound drivers when backups occur on the westbound Grand Avenue ramp and the tollway near the exit. When traffic slows, the detectors trigger flashing warning lights on two roadside signs long before the exit, he said.

The system is connected to an overhead electronic sign about four miles south of Grand Avenue that provides additional congestion warnings to drivers. The signs also provide travel times and alert drivers to changes in traffic patterns.

As part of the scheduled summer improvements, Rozek said, tollway engineers are evaluating modifying overhead signs to direct drivers to use the three lanes to the left and limit use of the far right lane to vehicles exiting to westbound Grand Avenue.

"The Illinois tollway's highest priority is safety and protection of the customers who use our system," he said. "The engineering department regularly reviews traffic data and evaluates roadways throughout the tollway system to identify improvements to enhance driver safety."

A periodic issue

Attorney Jennifer Ashley, who represents Bertram, said the rear-end collisions show the westbound Grand Avenue exit configuration on the northbound Tri-State has not been working. She said the proposed barrier wall extension "could help" and appears to be the only available option without a major overhaul of the exits.

"While it certainly can't hurt the traffic situation, only time will tell if extending the barrier wall will truly make a difference," Ashley said.

She said case law essentially negates the idea of suing a government agency such as the tollway over the exit design. A lawsuit likely will be filed on behalf of Bertram against the 34-year-old Lindenhurst man they say caused the crash.

Ashley contends the electronic congestion warning signs have not been enough of a safety measure.

"A sign with a flashing light one time along the roadway is not going to make a difference," she said. "If you're going 65 mph - some people drive faster - you may not even recognize or be able to see what the sign is trying to tell you."

Gurnee's tollway ramps have been a periodic issue since at least August 2000. That's when an Iowa woman and two children were killed after a semitrailer truck plowed into their minivan in a five-vehicle crash on the tollway's northbound side as they waited to reach a congested eastbound Grand Avenue ramp heading to Great America.

In 2001, Gurnee paid about $70,000 toward installation of the first electronic message board to warn drivers of the eastbound Grand Avenue exit backups. Longtime concerns from village officials about the eastbound Grand exit's congestion led to the improvements made in the 2015 reconstruction project.

Another problem arose in 2005 regarding the westbound Grand Avenue exit on northbound I-94. Rollover crashes on the ramp led Gurnee officials to demand a sign and flashing warning light to alert drivers to what had been a tight, winding ramp before the latest reconstruction.

Roughly 40,000 vehicles use the eight-ramp Grand Avenue interchange daily, according to the tollway.

  Bill Bertram of Round Lake Beach, with his attorney, Jennifer Ashley, talk about how a van rear-ended and totaled his car on the northbound Tri-State Tollway while waiting to reach a backed-up, westbound Grand Avenue ramp in November in Gurnee. Steve Lundy/slundy@dailyherald.com
  A rear-end crash that caused serious injuries to a man in September has caused new safety concerns about congestion on the Tri-State Tollway exit ramps in northern Lake County. Steve Lundy/slundy@dailyherald.com
  Attorney Jennifer Ashley, left, and Bill Bertram of Round Lake Beach talk about how a van rear-ended his car on the northbound Tri-State Tollway while waiting to reach a backed-up, westbound Grand Avenue ramp in November in Gurnee. Steve Lundy/slundy@dailyherald.com
  A rear-end crash that caused serious injuries to a man in November has caused safety concerns about congestion on the northbound Tri-State Tollway exit ramps at Grand Avenue in Gurnee. Illinois State Toll Highway Authority officials say traffic flow to the ramps will be improved from a summer construction project. Steve Lundy/slundy@dailyherald.com
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