Residents Near I-294 and North Will See Relief From Turn-around Traffic, it's Just a Matter of When

Written by Carol Kania Morency

Elmhurst residents who live near North Avenue and Interstate 294 are going to see relief from dangerous turn-around traffic in their neighborhood, but it might take awhile.

The upcoming Illinois Tollway project that will extend the Elgin-O'Hare Expressway to the airport comes with improvements to many local roads, including the construction of a ramp providing eastbound access form I-294 to North Avenue. The Tollway's Lidia Pilecky told Elmhurst aldermen on Monday that County Line Road will be elevated to allow for the ramp.

Currently, vehicles headed southbound on I-294 looking to head east on North Avenue—including plenty of semi trucks—must first exit west then turn around in the residential neighborhood.

The $3.4 billion western access project is still $300 million short, Pilecky said, but the project is moving forward. The North Avenue improvements may not happen until 2025, according to the Tollway's timeline. But the Tollway, along with the city of Northlake, is applying for various federal grants for the project, and certain grants may push up the date for the North Avenue work, she said.

By 2018, there will be interchange improvements where the Elgin-O'Hare meets Interstate 290 and Route 53, new ramps allowing full access to Interstate 90 at Elmhurst Road in Elk Grove Village (Elmhurst Road become York in Bensenville), and the construction of a western access road from York Road to O'Hare just north of Thorndale Avenue. The Elgin-O'Hare extension will be built along Thorndale.

The final phase includes the construction of a toll road connecting I-90 and I-294 west of O'Hare. This road, Pilecky said, will have no traditional toll booths and lanes, only overhead gantries similar to the Open Road Tolling structures. Money will be collected based on actual mileage traveled rather than where a driver gets on or off the road.

Pilecky also said the Tollway will build a wall between the ramp and the Maywood Sportsman's Club along County Line Road to prevent road salt and light pollution from impacting the club.

Groundbreaking is expected later this year. An open house about the project will be held from 4 to 7 p.m. Wednesday, June 26, at the Schaumburg Regional Airport, 905 W. Irving Park Road.

Pilecky's presentation to the City Council can be found here.