Rebuild Illinois funds bridging funding gap for infrastructure projects

PEORIA, Ill. — Bridges throughout Illinois are on the top of the priority list for a statewide infrastructure funding program.

“All of our bridges, all of them, are safe. I repeat — all of our bridges are safe,” said Omer Osman, Illinois secretary of transportation, to an audience at the Midwest Truck and Trailer Show in Peoria, sponsored by the Mid-West Truckers Association.

Osman’s update on statewide infrastructure construction and repair work was before the fatal Key Bridge collapse in Baltimore, but the director of IDOT stressed that bridges are a priority within the Rebuild Illinois transportation funding plan.

“While some might be decades old and long past their original life expectancy, I am proud, very proud, of our bridge inspection schedule and maintenance program to keep them open for the traveling public,” he said.

Osman cited the funding made available through the 2019 Rebuild Illinois capital plan.

“Through the end of 2023, Rebuild Illinois has made possible approximately $13.6 billion of improvements statewide on 5,659 miles of highways, 578 bridges and 862 additional safety improvements,” he said.

The Rebuild Illinois plan outlined a total of $25.4 billion for roads and bridges, $1.4 billion for major rail projects, $150 million in funding for new port improvements and $150 million for aeronautic facility improvements.

Osman outlined the bridge work in the Peoria area that was completed using Rebuild Illinois funds, including rehabilitation of the Murray Baker Bridge, that carries I-74 and Illinois 29 over the Illinois River, and the Bob Michel Bridge, which carries Illinois 40 over the Illinois River.

Construction continues on the eastbound McClugage Bridge and Osman said IDOT hopes to open the eastbound bridge later this year.

Other central Illinois bridge projects include major repairs to the Lacon Bridge, which carries Illinois 17 over the Illinois River in Marshall County.

That project involved an eight-month closure of the bridge. The repaired bridge reopened in late 2023.

More bridge projects throughout the state are on the IDOT repair list.

“Down the road, if not this year, but perhaps in 2025 and beyond, we have the U.S. 67 bridge in Beardstown, the I-64 bridge over the Wabash River in White County, I-80 over the Mississippi River in the Quad Cities, the Florence Bridge, the Quincy Bridge that is U.S. 24 into Quincy, the Route 18 bridge in Henry and the I-39 bridge over the Kishwaukee River just south of Rockford. All these bridges are the major bridges we are focusing on,” Osman said.

He added that Rebuild Illinois bridge work isn’t limited to large bridges.

“Most important to me are the smaller bridges no one talks about. Those are the rural bridges, the 20-foot, 25-foot bridges. We have all of them included in our program. All of them are scheduled to be repaired or replaced within the next five years,” he said.

With the passage of the 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, the state has access to more funding for its annual construction program.

“Rebuild Illinois has been supercharged. On top of the $16 billion in federal funds identified for Illinois through IIJA, billions, literally billions, more are available,” Osman said. “The end result is we are going to see an annual construction program for the next few years eclipsing $5 billion a year.”

Osman outlined some of the major road repair and construction projects that are part of the Rebuild Illinois plan, including: 16-mile rebuild of I-80 through Will County, a $1.3 billion project; I-57 widening in southern Illinois, a $200 million total project; and I-39 rebuild, including the U.S. 20 interchange, near Rockford in northern Illinois, a $300 million project.

Work began earlier this month on rebuilding the westbound lanes of I-70 between Effingham and Montrose in southern Illinois.

“That is a project that received a lot of attention for the impact is it having on your industry, on safety, on small towns throughout that area,” Osman told the audience, made up of trucking industry owners and owner/operators.

IDOT is emphasizing work-zone safety, Osman said, and is adding enhanced work-zone safety protections in and around work zones.

“You’ll be seeing enhanced work-zone safety countermeasures including additional rumble strips, areas to pull off in case of breakdowns or crashes, an expanded use of digital message boards to better inform and direct traffic in real time,” he said.

“We are committed to working with local first responders to ensure that when there are incidents in the work zone, they are handled as swiftly and safely as possible to keep traffic moving.”

Osman urged drivers to work together and pay special attention when approaching work zones and while driving through work zones.

“Maintain the speed limit in the work zone to encourage keeping traffic moving. Most fatal crashes in work zones are at the end of the queues,” he said.