Is Elgin-O’Hare really needed?

Is Elgin-O’Hare really needed?

As Governor Quinn, IDOT the Tollway and a host of dignitaries gathered to officially kick off the massive 12-year, $3.4 billion Elgin-O’Hare Western Access Project, the Prime Minister of Turkey and Japan and a host of dignitaries opened a railway tunnel underneath the Bosporus.

This is a tunnel that links Asian and European together. The tunnel is 8.5 miles long which includes a 4,593 foot underwater stretch. It cost $4.5 billion and will be capable of carrying 75,000 people per hour in either direction. It took 9 years to build with 4 years of delays, because they uncovered about 40,000 artifacts and helped archaeologists trace Istanbul’s history back 8,500 years. They plan on building a second tunnel for cars. And, yes, on their first day they are running into a few snags, but then we can’t even get a website up and running without snags.

So at the end of 12 years (if we’re lucky) Elgin-O’Hare will now end at York Road in Bensenville not in the airport, we will still have to go either north or south circle around back to the east side of the of the airport and entering it just as we do today. And let’s not forget will now have to pay a tolls to do this. Maybe someone should rethink this one before any more money is wasted on trying to get us into the airport. Something we already know how to do. Maybe change the name of the road to Bensenville to Hanover Park and be done with it.

Last but not least, Governor Quinn, IDOT and a host of dignitaries, did you take a drive down Rohlwing Road? Sixty-four million dollars wasted on a road with no traffic. Another great unneeded project.

Karen Fahlgren

Itasca