Route 60 bridge construction to last a year
Commuters using the Route 60 bridge over the Tri-State Tollway near Lake Forest might want to start mapping alternative ways to traverse the area for the next year.
Work on the reconstruction and widening of the Route 60 bridge should start in the middle of next month, ending in December 2008. Details about the $18.5 million project were revealed today at a news conference hosted by Republican U.S. Rep. Mark Kirk of Highland Park.
"Anyone who has been caught on Route 60 after 3:30 p.m. on a weekday knows that you might as well get a hotel room instead of fighting the traffic," Kirk said.
Considered one of the worst interchanges in northern Illinois, the east-west Route 60 bridge over the tollway has two through lanes and a left-turn lane in each direction.
When finished, the bridge will be expanded to three through lanes and two left-turn lanes each way, said Clarita Lao, program development engineer for the Illinois Department of Transportation.
Lao said she expects the construction project will lead to additional traffic diverting to Riverwoods Road and St. Mary's Road, with drivers then seeking east-west streets such as routes 22 and 176.
An official Web site called www.stuckonsixty.com is offering construction updates and other information.