Favorable weather might stave off Dunham Road closure

Motorists who travel in the area of the Dunham and Stearns roads construction projects might not be inconvenienced as long as previously thought. And commuters who've long yearned for the ability to take the train to travel between Will, DuPage and Cook counties may yet see the day, according to two announcements Monday by the Kane County Division of Transportation.

Transportation staff said summer construction on all area projects is winding down for the winter. As the heavy machinery slumbers, the county's massive Stearns Road bridge project has hit the 25 percent completion mark. The project will eventually allow for another route across the Fox River. Related to that project is nearby work on Dunham Road in St. Charles Township that is reconfiguring a nightmare of an intersection at Illinois 25.

Contractors originally forecast a lengthy closure of Dunham Road to accommodate repaving the roadway in the spring. Manny Gomez, the county's assistant director of transportation, said Monday the closure may not be necessary.

"If the weather holds out, and we have a good spring, and it's relatively dry, and temperatures are conducive to pouring concrete pavement, the plan will be to get all that done and avoid the closure of Dunham Road," Gomez said. "In the event that spring turns out to be pretty bad weather-wise, then the contractor will proceed with the closure."

If the closure is necessary, the resulting detour from Dunham Road would take traffic to Stearns Road, east to Route 59, north to U.S. 20, west to Route 25 and back south. The detour would last for up to three months.

Meanwhile, fans of using the train for their commute may finally see some movement on the long-dormant STAR Line. The proposed 55-mile Metra enhancement would create a commuter connection extending from Joliet to O'Hare International Airport. A Kane County planning memo on Monday indicates preliminary engineering for the project may begin as soon as spring. A new report with potential financing options will be reviewed soon by county staff. The report needs approval by Metra and the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning before heading to the Federal Transit Authority. Kane County Deputy Transportation Director Tom Rickert said a major obstacle to the project is the price and the lack of any source for funding on the local end. The STAR Line project is estimated to cost about $2.76 billion.