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News
Route 30 reconstruction starts in March : News : Oswego Ledger-Sentinel : Hometown Newspaper for Oswego and Montgomery, IllinoisRoute 30 reconstruction starts in March
| Highway to be widened to four lanes between Briarcliff Road, Goodwin Drive
| by John Etheredge
| 1/31/2013
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The long-planned reconstruction and widening of U.S. Route 30 to four lanes in Montgomery and Oswego should begin this spring.
The Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) has awarded a contract to Plote Construction, Inc., of Hoffman Estates, to complete the $22.3 million project.
IDOT and Plote officials are scheduled to meet Feb. 25 at IDOT's Schaumburg district office to discuss construction staging for the project.
Actual construction is expected to begin in March with completion anticipated by September 2014, according to information provided by State Rep. Tom Cross, R-Oswego.
The project will involve the removal of a 2.4 mile section of Route 30 between Briarcliff Road and Goodwin Drive, just west of U.S. Route 34.
Contractors will replace the existing two lane pavement with four lanes separated by raised, center medians with turn lanes at Fifth Street, Douglas Road and Briarcliff Road.
In addition, contractors will install noise abatement walls along both sides of Route 30 extending from Briarcliff Road east to an area about one-quarter mile west of Douglas Road.
The noise abatement walls have been included in the project at the request of the Village of Montgomery. Village board members deemed the noise walls necessary to shield residents of the village's Seasons Ridge Subdivision from traffic noise from the widened highway.
Also as part of the project, a sidewalk will be installed along the north side of Route 30 extending from Douglas Road east to Goodwin Drive, near the Oswego Public Library District's Montgomery Campus Library.
Existing traffic signals at Fifth Street, Douglas Road and Briarcliff Road will be updated and a bridge spanning the Waubonsie Creek will be replaced as part of the construction.
Plote Construction is not new to the Oswego-Montgomery area. This past fall, the firm completed the reconstruction and widening of Orchard Road to four lanes with center turn lanes between U.S. Route 30 and Jericho Road in Montgomery. For that project, the Kane County Board awarded the firm a $9.2 million contract.
IDOT officials have deemed the Route 30 project necessary to improve traffic flow and safety on Route 30. Traffic volume on the highway has increased significantly over the past 20 years due to population growth in Oswego, Montgomery and in the surrounding communities.
In addition, Oswego Police have responded to numerous and sometimes fatal accidents on Route 30 between Fifth Street and Goodwin Drive in recent years.
Current IDOT traffic count figures for Route 30 show 26,000 vehicles traveling daily on the highway between Briarcliff Road and Douglas Road, and 24,400 vehicles on the highway each day between Fifth Street and Route 34. As a point of comparison, the same IDOT traffic count figures show 23,400 motorists currently using Route 34 at the Fox Bend Golf Course in Oswego each day. IDOT widened that section of Route 34 to four lanes with center turn lanes more than a decade ago.
Cross said Tuesday he was pleased IDOT will soon begin construction on the project.
"Clearly, the improvements to Route 30 are needed for our region," he said.
Cross noted he has worked for the past several years to secure the necessary funding for IDOT to widen Route 30 along with Ill. Route 71 between Route 34 and Orchard Road in Oswego, and Ill. Route 47 in Yorkville.
Cross added he is appreciative of Governor Pat Quinn for supporting his request for funding for the three highway projects.
"To Governor Quinn's credit, he listened when we did the capital bill a few years ago," Cross said, adding, "The governor doesn't get a lot of compliments, but I have to be complimentary of both him (Quinn) and the department of transportation in responding to our need to improve these highways."
State opens bids for
Route 71 widening
Cross reported that IDOT officials currently expect construction to start in Oswego on the Route 71 reconstruction and widening project by "late summer at the earliest."
IDOT officials are currently seeking to finalize a contract with D Construction of Coal City to complete the project. The agency opened bids for the project earlier this month and D Construction was the apparent low bidder, according to information provided by Cross.
Currently, a contractor for the village is re-locating a water main outside of the Route 71 right-of-way. The project, along with moving other utilities, must be completed before contractors for IDOT can begin work.
Like Route 30, the Route 71 project will involve the removal of the existing two lane highway and the installation of a four lane highway with center turn lanes.
The highway will be improved between Route 34 and the Orchard/Minkler Road intersection.
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