Central Road rebuild will cause detours for Rolling Meadows students, residents

The project is still years away from breaking ground, but planning already has begun and detour routes are being drawn up for reconstruction of a major roadway traveled by Rolling Meadows High School students and teachers every day.

Central Road will be rebuilt from Frontage Road to Linden Lane, covering the section of the well-traveled east-west thoroughfare that includes the high school, John G. Conyers Learning Academy, the Rolling Meadows Park District’s Park Central, Rolling Meadows Historical Museum, Central Road Elementary School, and a number of homes.

East of the high school — from Linden Lane to Wilke Road — Central Road will be resurfaced.

The pavement condition index used by transportation engineers gave the street “poor” to “very poor” marks, necessitating reconstruction and resurfacing to restore roadway integrity, city officials said.

Phase two engineering design of the arterial improvements is expected to begin soon; initial engineering wrapped up over the summer. The project is expected to go to bid in 2028 and be finished by 2030.

The scope of work is also expected to include replacement of the two concrete slab bridges within blocks of each other above branches of Salt Creek.

From Frontage Road to Linden Lane, the south 5-foot-wide sidewalk will be replaced with an 8-foot-wide multiuse path, while repairs will be made as needed on the north 5-foot sidewalk.

A center pedestrian refuge island is planned near the west entrance to the high school, while further west, curb bump outs will be installed to better define parking lanes and provide better visibility of pedestrians, officials said.

Intersection improvements are proposed at Barker Avenue and Jay Lane.

The roadway and bridge reconstruction west of the high school will require temporary closure of that portion of Central. But project documents indicate that in front of the school, westbound Central will remain open, and school patrons will exit east from the campus to Oak Lane and Linden Lane.

A public open house to discuss all the ins and outs of the construction and detours will likely be held at the school, officials said.

Federal Surface Transportation Program funds are expected to cover most of the construction and phase two engineering costs, under an 80-20 cost sharing arrangement. City budget and capital improvement plan documents show the city is setting aside up to $1.7 million to cover its share.