ILLINOIS ROUTE 53/120
Project Overview
The Illinois Route 53/120 Project is proposed to be a 21st century
urban highway – a modern boulevard with a small footprint to
protect the natural environment and preserve the character
of Lake County. It is envisioned as a multi-modal, sustainable
and innovative transportation system that will address specific
needs for congestion relief and provide greater connectivity.
The current proposal includes the following improvements:
Extension of Illinois Route 53 – four lanes at 45 mph
• From Lake Cook Road to just south of Illinois Route 120
Upgrade of existing Illinois Route 120 (west end) – four lanes
• From U.S. Route 12 to west terminus of Illinois Route 120 Bypass
Illinois Route 120 Bypass – four lanes at 45 mph
• From east of Wilson Road to east of U.S. Route 45
Upgrade of existing Illinois Route 120 (east end) – four lanes
• From east terminus of Illinois Route 120 Bypass to the Tri-State Tollway (I-94)
Current Phase of Work
The current phase of this project builds on the recommendations and framework
outlined by the Blue Ribbon Advisory Council (BRAC). The Illinois Tollway, the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning (CMAP) and Lake County will partner on a
combined, two-pronged effort to examine the feasibility of the project with respect to
financing and land use. To facilitate this effort, new Finance and Land Use Committees
will help provide a recommendation to the Illinois Tollway Board of Directors as to
whether the Tollway should continue to move forward with the project.
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To determine the feasibility, the analysis will focus on five key study areas: design,
environmental, financing, operations and regulatory. CMAP’s Land Use Plan will feed
into the design, environmental and financing aspects of the analysis. The outcome of
this effort will help to answer the overarching questions “Is the project feasible?” and
“Should the Tollway build the project?”
BACKGROUND
An Illinois Route 53 northern extension
has been considered since the 1960s.
However, due to the lack of consensus
among various interests, the project has
not yet come to fruition. The Illinois Tollway established the Illinois Route 53/120
Blue Ribbon Advisory Council (BRAC)
in 2011 to develop regional consensus
on whether the Tollway should move forward with the project. The BRAC outlined
its work and findings in the June 7, 2012
Resolution and Summary Report, which
concluded that there is consensus for the
Tollway to move forward with the project
and provided the scope, configuration
and design elements of the new roadway.
The report also suggested potential methods for financing the project. The BRAC
identified necessary next steps for the
project, which serve as the basis for this
current phase of work.
The BRAC defined a set of guiding principles to ensure the outcomes are clearly
defined and the project fulfills its goals.
The most important of these principles is
to use innovative and environmentally beneficial design solutions to strike a balance
between improving mobility and access
while minimizing negative environmental
and long-term developmental impacts.
To view the BRAC’s
recommendations,
as captured in
the June 2012
Resolution and
Summary, please
go to the “Construction/Planning”
section of www.illinoistollway.com
click on “Community Outreach”, then
click on “Illinois Route 53/120.”
Printed on recycled paper.
For more information, visit www.illinoistollway.com or email the Community Outreach Coordinator, Cathy Valente at [email protected].