New I-490 tollway can deliver long-awaited western O'Hare access

It came as no surprise that O'Hare International Airport is on track to become the busiest in the United States once again. The Daily Herald's recent article, "Bridesmaid no more? O'Hare on track to regain crown as busiest U.S. airport," correctly highlights new international routes and recent expansion plans as catalysts for the airport's growth.

However, as we have long stated, the long-term success of an airport depends just as much on its ability to move people and goods in and out as it does its ability to get them up and down.

For years, traffic has built up on interstates and local roads as passengers converge on O'Hare's singular access point from the east. Now, it is time to provide access from the west. The Illinois Tollway is doing its part to make that happen.

With O'Hare reclaiming its place as the nation's busiest airport, it's time to build for the future by providing a western access point into O'Hare. Luckily for us, the Tollway stands ready to aid in this effort. Last week, Tollway leaders and the Canadian Pacific Railroad approved a Memorandum of Understanding that represents perhaps the last major hurdle toward transforming this regional multi-legged transportation network with the soon-to-be-constructed I-490 Tollway.

The I-490 Tollway will complete the roadway infrastructure for western access. We just need O'Hare to construct much-needed passenger terminals and freight facilities on the west side.

This new I-490 Tollway project provides Illinois with greater potential for economic growth than any other planned project in the entire state. With the completion of the Illinois Route 390 Tollway in 2017, economic development is already under way with more to come. When complete, the new I-490 Tollway can connect businesses and communities with O'Hare, transit facilities, major freight transportation hubs, distribution centers and multiple interstate highways, including the Jane Addams Memorial Tollway (I-90) and the Tri-State Tollway (I-294).

With the necessary steps taken to make I-490 a reality, the potential exists to create 65,000 new and permanent jobs for working families, significantly reduce travel delays and transform the economic base of our region to new levels. Local tax revenues have the potential to increase by $29 million annually, while $750 million in federal, state and local tax revenue will be generated during the construction period alone. As a testament to the projected effects on regional economic development and national transportation priorities, the U.S. government designated Illinois Route 390 and I-490 Tollways as a Project of National and Regional Significance.

Through years of leadership and a comprehensive, collaborative planning process, the I-490 Tollway and western access to O'Hare can be a transformative project and a signature example of what can be accomplished when business, labor, regional planning and local communities come together to achieve enormous economic impact and create jobs for working families throughout the region.

These are exciting times for communities around O'Hare, and we applaud the leadership at the Tollway for their commitment to delivering western access for us and for the region.

Rodney Craig is village president of Hanover Park. Craig Johnson is village president of Elk Grove Village.