Latest news with #IllinoisTollway
Chicago Tribune
03-07-2025
- Automotive
- Chicago Tribune
Lane restrictions planned for Franklin Avenue and Green Street work in Franklin Park
Traffic shifts are planned on Franklin Avenue/ Green Street between York Road and Runge Street for the start of work on a Cook County roadway improvement project to accommodate the Illinois Tollway's I-490/Franklin Avenue Interchange Project, according to a news release issued by Illinois Tollway. Traffic was scheduled to be shifted beginning July 7 on Franklin Avenue/Green Street and a single lane maintained in each direction between York Road and Runge Street. The work also will require some driveway access restrictions and utility service disruptions at select commercial properties along the corridor. Sidewalks along Franklin Avenue/Green Street will remain accessible where possible, officials said. The traffic shift and lane closures are necessary to allow for the reconstruction of the westbound lanes of Franklin Avenue/Green Street, and utility improvements. Work on the eastbound lanes is anticipated to begin later in 2025. The project is anticipated to be completed in 2026. Construction in this area is being coordinated with Cook and DuPage counties, the villages of Bensenville and Franklin Park, the Cook County Department of Transportation & Highways and area fire and police departments and involves reconstructing Franklin Avenue/Green Street to expand the roadway to two lanes in each direction. This work will align with the ongoing Franklin Park improvements east of Runge Street. The roadway reconstruction will also support connections to future ramps at the new I-490 Tollway via the Franklin Avenue Interchange. The project also includes the addition of a new multi-use path and drainage improvements including storm sewer installation, water main upgrades, construction of detention ponds and curb and gutter replacement, officials said. The Illinois Tollway is constructing a new, full-access interchange connecting the I-490 Tollway to Franklin Avenue and providing direct access to the Central Tri-State Tollway (I-294) and improving mobility in the communities of Bensenville and Franklin Park. The multi-phase project includes constructing new interchange ramps at Franklin Avenue, reconstructing Franklin Avenue/Green Street in partnership with Cook County, constructing a portion of I-490 Tollway mainline and improving local road connections to alleviate congestion and facilitate seamless access to the interchange. The interchange project is scheduled for completion in 2026. Construction updates, project information, maps and detour information for the Cook County Franklin Avenue/Green Street Reconstruction Project are available on the Cook County's website at Information for work that is part of the I-490 Tollway Project can be found in the Projects section on the Tollway's website at
Chicago Tribune
21-06-2025
- Automotive
- Chicago Tribune
I-Pass event helps drivers learn about Illinois Tollway's new transponders
Between his business and personal uses, Adam Bartos of Barrington is responsible for six vehicles, and all of them are driven at times on the Illinois toll roads. When the Illinois Tollway began switching from transponders to Sticker Tags, allowing drivers to pay tolls on their I-PASS account electronically, Bartos started to have challenges when a new tag did not work. First learning about the change in December when a letter arrived from the tollway authority with the Sticker Tag included, Bartos said it did not work. He called the tollway, and a new one was sent. He was unable to get it to function as well. Learning about an I-PASS Event in nearby Wauconda, Bartos went with all six transponders and information on all six vehicles with hopes of walking away with Sticker Tags and ridding himself of the transponders. He learned about the event from state Sen. Darby Hills, R-Barrington Hills. 'I was done in five to 10 minutes,' Bartos said. 'They took care of me and fixed it all up.' Scores of people received free Sticker Tags for their vehicles and returned their transponders for recycling on Tuesday at the Wauconda Township office, acquiring the latest technology for paying tolls in the state's tollways. Taking office in February after the retirement of former state Sen. Dan McConchie, R-Hawthorn Woods, Hills said she got the idea to hold the Sticker Tag event because it was a way to make something necessary easier for her constituents. 'This is an opportunity to turn in their transponders and get the new Sticker Tag,' Hills said. 'When they turn in their transponders, they get a $10 credit on their account. This is a way to make something easier for my constituents.' Kim Johnson, Hills' events and engagement coordinator, said 166 people came to the event, returning 290 transponders and those who needed it, receiving the Sticker Tags. As people entered the room, they were greeted and escorted to a tollway representative — there were seven there sitting on one side of a long table—to get their Sticker Tag, return their transponder, or both. It took between five and 10 minutes. 'Everything was very seamless,' Johnson said. 'There were no quirks. This is a good way to get to know the people in the district.' Good on the Illinois tollways, the Sticker Tags can also be used on 34 toll roads around the country, including the Chicago Skyway and the Indiana Toll Road, according to the Illinois Tollway Authority's website. Once installed, tollway authority spokesperson Dan Rozek said, once the Sticker Tag is applied to the windshield, tolls will be recorded by embedded identification within the sticker itself. He recommends replacing them if a person gets a new vehicle. Should a person rent a car, transponders are movable from one vehicle to another. Rozek said they can log into their account online, enter the rental license plate number, and the dates they will be using the temporary vehicle. For people like Chris Lawler of Wauconda, the event was a chance to 'get rid of my transponder.' Brenda Jentink of Wauconda Township said initially she had some concerns, but they were alleviated. A Barrington Hills trustee before her appointment to the Illinois State Senate, Hills said occasions like the sticker event are an opportunity to interact with her constituents. Her 26th State Senate District has more than 50 times as many people as Barrington Hills. 'I hope to do more events like this, like a Mobile DMV,' Hills said. 'I may do an I-Cash event,' she added, referring to efforts of the Illinois State Treasurer to help people learn they have money sitting in an account in the treasurer's office. 'Town Halls are a good way of meeting people, too.'
Yahoo
07-05-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
New I-PASS stickers to be automatically mailed to Illinois Tollway customers soon
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WTVO) — The Illinois Tollway announced it will automatically send new I-PASS stickers to customers with old transponders. According to the Tollway, new I-PASS sticker tags will be mailed to customers whose old transponders are reaching the end of ther battery life. 'After receiving the swap letter via US Mail, all customers need to do is activate the new I-PASS Sticker Tag by going online or using the Official Illinois Tollway App and then attach the new sticker tag on the inside windshield of their vehicle,' the authority said. According to the Tollway, the stickers are smaller and less expensive than the boxes drivers have been using for years, and no deposit is needed. The stickers also do not expire, as opposed to the old transponders, which had expiration dates that required users to pay to replace them after the date. The stickers use radio frequency identification to communicate with the tolls, eliminating the need for batteries. The system works by creating a prepaid account with funds that are automatically deducted when passing through a tollway system. Illinois is the 20th state to adopt the sticker technology. Once activated, the Sticker Tag can be used on the Illinois Tollway and on E-Z Pass roadways in other states within 24 hours of activation. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to MyStateline | WTVO News, Weather and Sports.
Chicago Tribune
24-04-2025
- Business
- Chicago Tribune
Ambitious Franklin Avenue, Green Street project aims to improve O'Hare transportation
Construction will begin this spring on a large roadway improvement project along Franklin Avenue and Green Street in Franklin Park. The project will expand the roadway, which stretches from Runge Street in Franklin Park to York Road in Bensenville, as part of a ongoing toll road I-490/IL-390 project to connect to O'Hare International Airport. That project is slated to cost $534 million and is intended to improve access to the west side of O'Hare, thereby improving the immediate surrounding areas, according to Illinois Tollway. The Franklin Avenue/Green Street portion will widen to allow the industrial corridor to accommodate more traffic, offer more pedestrian amenities and help truck access into a nearby railyard. The scope of the project should aid commuters and residents as well as commercial freight trucks driving from the airport to the train depot. '[Companies] will be able to use interstates for more of their trucks,' said Nathan Roseberry, assistant superintendent of the Cook County Department of Transportation and Highways. 'We'll be going from a two-lane to a five-lane road on Franklin Street.' With a new highway comes more demand on local surface routes. Due to the convergence of nearly all types of transportation hubs, updating the whole corridor is essential for shipping, officials said. 'The yard is directly adjacent to the airport, so you have air, rail and trucks all coexisting,' Roseberry said. The project also will provide more traffic signals, bike and pedestrian lanes, landscape restoration, sewer repairs and curb upgrades for compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act. The project is expected to cost $34.5 million with the money coming from Cook County, Bensenville, Franklin Park, the tollway and the federal government. The project kicks off in coming weeks and will wrap up in 2027, though most of the construction will be finished in 2026, officials said. Drivers can expect some traffic delays during the work and Roseberry said residents can check progress on the county's website. 'This one is a large enough project where we have a stand-alone page where we'll have updates,' he said. The website can be found by searching Green Street and Franklin Avenue Improvement Project.
Yahoo
22-04-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
‘Respect the Zone So We All Get Home': National Work Zone Awareness Week underway in Illinois
CHICAGO — State transportation officials and police are urging drivers to respect work zones as the construction season ramps up. It is National Work Zone Awareness Week. The Illinois Department of Transportation, Illinois Tollway and state police held a press conference Tuesday morning sharing details about local projects and how to safely navigate work zones. The year's theme is 'Respect the Zone So We All Get Home.' 'The people you pass working on equipment or behind the cones and barricades are someone's father, mother, son, daughter, friend and neighborhor. Whether you encounter a small crew patching potholes or multiple workers on an interstate construction project that stretches across several miles, the people in that work zone want to get home at the end of the day just like you,' said Jose Rios, Region 1 Engioneer, Illinois Department of Transportation. The joint safety message is to help reduce the number of crashes, inuries and deaths on roadways in Illinois. Many frontline works Tuesday shared their personal encounters on working in the field. As construction season is upon us, there will be lane changes, closures, signage and multiple work zones. According to the Illinois Tollway, it is investing $1.15 billion in roadway repairs and improvements. Much of that construction occuring as part of the Move Illinois capital program. 'That includes major work on portions of the central Tri-State Tollway, I-294 between St. Charles Road and I-55. As well as where we're building a massive interchange connecting I-294 to I-290 and I-88. When completed, these improvements will make traveling on the tollway safer and more convenient for our customers,' said Rohan Gayle, Chief of Maintenance and Traffic, Illinois Tollway. The biggest message is to respect work zones and to make sure you are within the speed limit and avoid any distractions. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
