Route 120 corridor study narrows
Options for the alignment of a new Route 120 have narrowed as a detailed study of a 14-mile corridor from Volo to Waukegan heads into the home stretch.
Public comment on alternates on the east and west ends, as well as the middle section bypassing the existing Route 120 to the south around Grayslake, are being accepted until Friday, April 24.
Those details and a cornucopia of information, including maps and reports, regarding the work of the Route 120 Corridor Planning Council are available at 120now.com.
Together, there are 10 alternates. Options for the west end run from Bacon Road to west of Wilson Road; on the east, the options are from Route 45 to Almond Road; and, in the center the choices of road alignments run between Curran Road and Alleghany Road.
Each has advantages and disadvantages in terms of cost, environmental impact, compatibility with existing land uses, connections to existing roads and other factors. Estimated costs run from $217 million to $244 million.
About 200 people attended a public information forum last week in Hainesville, the second in a process that's been ongoing for about two years.
Input from those who attended a similar forum last fall contributed to a decision by the planning council to favor a four-lane boulevard, as opposed to a limited-access expressway or other road type.
"It is winding down," said Chuck Gleason, project manager for the Lake County Division of Transportation. "The next step for us is to look at financing and second, the accesses along the route. Those are the two key items still left to be done."
The Route 120 Corridor Planning Council consists of five county board members and representatives from 11 communities along the route.
Local leaders at a transportation summit in 2005 pegged improvements to Route 120, the major east-west corridor through central Lake County, as the top priority.
Although it is a state route, local agencies have taken the lead on crafting a consensus on the road type and alignment to present to IDOT.
The findings of the local council will pave the way for more detailed state studies that would be eligible for federal funds. The groundwork is expected to save a considerable amount of time as IDOT would be concentrating on a single plan, rather than having to flush out the alternatives.
A "unified vision" covering all aspects of the project is expected to be voted on locally in September.
After that, preliminary state studies are expected to take three to five years. Construction planning and right-of-way acquisition would take another two to four years.
Areas of concern include the presence of forest preserves at either end of the study area and the use of a 300-foot-wide right-of-way, which some contend is too large, for planning purposes.