Lake County Motorist-- GREAT Blog!

I have been reading a great blog for some time now and I need to share it with you becuase of its topical nature and of course it's coverage of Lake County Traffic. Lake County Motorist is a blog about driving in Lake County, Illinois. The author is a relatively new Lake County resident, having lived here for two years. Here is what he says about his blog.

I’m now turning my sights to my new home county, because this place has a lot of traffic. Metra has become my best friend, but I still drive quite a bit more than I did while living in the city. Around here, I can use a little help finding the best routes, and roads are always under construction (which can sometimes be a good thing because we need the infrastructure). And if I “discover” a good route, I’ll share it - that is, if I can remember which roads I was on. I often find new routes while getting unbelievably lost, but that’s part of the adventure. Let’s talk about Lake County transportation.

I would add this to your favorites!

Passenger moons speed camera

I got this from one of my favorite sites Boing Boing, and since we all seem to be tense with my last couple posts this could be funny. I warn you its mildly graphic so you have been warned adult concepts! Road rage! You could visualize this happening in some Lake County commutes!

Illinois Works Coalition

Illinois' infrastructure is a vital asset that significantly contributes to our overall success. A strong state infrastructure fosters business growth, world-class schools and thriving communities.

Investment in infrastructure creates jobs and sets the stage for Illinois' continued economic leadership. However, it has been nine years since the Illinois General Assembly passed a capital bill.

Illinois Works is a $25 billion capital improvement program designed to make crucial investments in our schools, roads, bridges, airports and transit systems. Crucial investments that will improve our quality of life and create hundreds of thousands of jobs.

In the coming weeks and months, this site will be home to a statewide movement calling for the passage of Illinois Works during the spring legislative session.

We ask you to join with us and advocate for passage of Illinois Works. It's time to rebuild our infrastructure and put Illinois to work.

Mayors Transportation Committee Meeting

I attended a Metropolitan Mayors Caucus Transportation Committee last week and was able to listen to a couple proposals that the Metropolitan Planning Council is working on. One of them was the concept of congestion pricing on toll roads.

The concept being that if you pay a higher toll during peak hours, people are less likely to drive for frivolous things during those peak times. I have noticed that on days where some businesses have the day off, traffic is slightly less nasty, and the flow is smoother. Presidents day is one that comes to mind. However in some of the examples given people in LA could pay $9 for a trip down a toll road!

Rather then write endlessly about this here is a link to the Metropolitan Planning Council list of articles about congestion pricing. Later on this week I am going to write about some local road projects and some rail projects worth a long range look.

The Case for Capital: LCP / LCTA Investors Forum April 28

Transportation and its need for capital in Illinois will be the topic of the morning on Monday, April 28 at Lake County Partners (LCP) / Lake County Transportation Alliance (LCTA) Investors Forum. Beginning with a breakfast networking reception, the forum will be held from 7:30 - 10:00 a.m. at the University Center of Lake County in Grayslake.

Alleviation of transportation congestion and enhancement of mass transit are clearly two high priority goals on Lake County's economic development agenda.

Key note speakers include:
State Representative Julie Hamos, Chair of the Illinois Mass Transit Committee, who will speak about "The Need for Transit Capital" and State Representative Sidney Mathias, Vice Chair of the Illinois Mass Transit Committee, who will address "The Need for Highway and Bridge Capital." Hamos was the chief sponsor of the recently enacted mass transit legislation (HB 656).

U. S. Representatives Melissa Bean and Mark Kirk are also invited (not yet confirmed) to provide transportation updates from the federal perspective - an important one since billions of federal dollars for transportation capital projects are at stake awaiting state match.

State Senator Terry Link and State Representative JoAnn Osmond will present updates at the state level on transportation legislative issues of interest. At the county level, Lake County Board's Vice Chair Mike Talbett will discuss Lake County's transportation-related legislative program.

In addition, local and regional updates will be presented on a range of topics:

• Bill Gentes, Mayor of Round Lake, on progress of the Route 120 Corridor Planning Council. Gentes is chair of the Route 120 CPC.
• Kent Street, Village Manager for Deerfield, on progress of U. S. Route 41 Corridor Planning Group. Street chairs the Route 41 CPG.
• Catherine Starostovic, Grant Township Supervisor, will discuss paratransit opportunities in Lake County, including current progress and future plans. Starostovic is Chair of the Lake County Coordinated Transportation Services Committee (LCCTSC).
• Diane O'Keefe and Marty Buehler will present updates on capital funding priority projects at the state and county levels. O'Keefe is the Illinois Department of Transportation District One Engineer, and Buehler is the Lake County Department of Transportation Engineer.

Illinois State Representative Kathy Ryg will close the forum with an update on her Task Force's efforts to align the DCEO Northeast Region's Economic Development vision and agenda with Lake County's 52 communities and LCP. Other sponsors for the event include Lake Cook TMA, Lake County Municipal League, and Lake County.

Transit Innovations in Curitiba, Brazil

The city of Curitiba is home to almost 2 million people and is the cultural, political, and financial center in southern Brazil. It has faced many of the same dilemmas that plague transportation planners and policymakers in U.S. cities. In the 1960s, traffic congestion was ruining the livability of the city and harming the economy, but the city did not have enough money to build the kind of expensive, fixed-rail transit line that had become the norm in other large cities around the world. An innovative, low-cost solution was needed, or else Curitiba would stop growing and lose its status as the economic hub of the region.

Local planners, led by future mayor Jamie Lerner, tapped available resources to provide the best possible product for their residents. Rather than spend $16-24 million/mile for a light rail system or $100–200 million/mile for an underground subway, the city invested $6 million/mile to construct an extensive rapid- bus system. Planners took the comfort, speed, and frequency of an expensive subway and applied them to an above-ground, subway-like system using buses. They built tube bus stations and installed turnstiles for rapid boarding and fare collection along designated bus lanes. A conventional bus, with an 80-passenger capacity on an average street, could transport 1,000 passengers per day. Boarding tubes and bus right-of-way lanes allow Curitiba's buses to carry 4,000 passengers per day.

Curitiba's bus system has been a huge success, as the city has been transformed into a vibrant, pedestrian-friendly, environmentally conscious, and sustainable place. With buses arriving every 36 seconds to move passengers in and out of the city, Curitiba's 1,902 buses attract 2.3 million riders daily. Because there are so many transit users, fuel consumption in the city is 30 percent lower than in Brazil's other major metropolitan areas.

Lessons to Learn

Curitiba's convenience, cleanliness, and attractiveness of a public transportation system encourage people to leave their cars at home and take a bus. In Curitiba, for example, 85 percent of the population uses the system, as development around the stations also helps increase ridership. Transit users can easily access and enjoy nearby services and amenities including housing, restaurants, and stores. The city coordinated with land use and zoning departments to ensure that higher density residential units were allowed closer to the tube bus stations.

Chicago and other U.S. cities are considering new bus systems that borrow the best ideas from Curitiba. Mayor Richard Daley recently said, "All the money we're spending to remodel the El and the tunnel system… that is an enormous amount of money. You'll have to put it in [again] in another 20 years or 30 years. Some way, you have to look at some form of a bus system."

Curitiba and Chicago have similar population size, transit budget constraints, and roles as a cultural and economic hub. Whether it's re-striping current traffic lanes to accommodate a bus-only lane for rapid transit access or better interconnectivity between transportation modes, Chicago can learn from Curitiba's transit success.

More Information & Resources:

• The Road to Curitiba—New York Times
• Issues in Bus Rapid Transit: Curitiba—Public Transit
• The Curitiba Experience: Evolution of the Bus System—USDOT Federal transit Administration
• Curitiba's Urban Experiment—PBS Frontline World

Thanks to the Metropolitan Planning Council for the article.

Paving Cedar Lake Road Moved Forward

The Village has been able to get Lake County to resurface Cedar Lake Road from Hart to Park Road. The resurfacing was programed for 2012 but given the accelerated deterioration of the road this winter, we were able to get this $500,000 resurfacing project. There is also a $20 million dollar resurfacing project that will have bids opened this May as well on the horizon, so there will be some relief for some of the numbing trips over these roads!

Get Informed and Provide Input on Transportation

Transportation is a top strategic priority of the Lake County Board and the County recognizes that part of the solution has to be addressed in Springfield. The County is asking state leaders to approve a capital program that adequately funds all forms of state transportation. Citizens can let their voice be heard on this critical issue by sending an email message to their state legislators, Governor Blagojevich, and state legislative leaders encouraging them to dedicate funding for roads, bridges, and transit across Illinois. Visitors to the County Building in Waukegan can email their state leaders at a computer terminal set up in the lobby which links to www.FixOurRoadsNow.com.

A computer is also accessible in the lobby of the Lake County Division of Transportation in Libertyville. The www.FixOurRoadsNow.com website is sponsored by the Illinois Road and Transportation Builders Association, whose mission is to protect, improve and promote the transportation design and construction industry in Illinois. After the user enters their contact information, the website determines who their representatives are, and allows them to personalize an email message.

Lets Talk Roads

Route 53! Is it the great white whale? Or is it the solution to all Lake Counties Traffic ills? I do know what it is, probably the single most polarizing issue in Lake County for the 20-30 years.

Anyone who drives a car through western Lake County can see that the old country roads are woefully inadequate to today's traffic-that wider, faster roads like the 53 extension are sorely needed. It's simple common sense-so why the big fuss?

The real opposition, the moneyed, vocal opposition, is coming from a different group: the NIMBYs. (NIMBY stands for "not in my back yard.")

In some ways, it's understandable. Given a choice, most everyone would prefer not to have a major thoroughfare running right by their neighborhood. If it were possible, we'd all like to live in the peace and quiet of a quaint nineteenth century village, while having all the modern conveniences at the same time. But, of course, that isn't possible. There are always tradeoffs.

Think about it: any highway that services a highly populated area is going to have to run close to someone. To those who live in proximity to the proposed route I say instead: let's work together, rather than against one another. The need for adequate roads is a fact of modern life, like the need for power lines, water mains, and rail lines. Rather than cooking up transparent "reasons" against 53 to hide NIMBY, why not make sure that anyone genuinely disadvantaged is fairly compensated, and that everything (like soundproofing walls, landscaping, wide roadway shoulders) are provided to minimize the impact of needed roads on those living nearby? That will create a "win-win" for everyone.

Having said all that I am not terribly optimistic that it will get done, while I and probably 95% of the Round Lake area support 53 we need to focus on doable projects like the 120 bypass. I would gladly lead and champion a realistic effort to build 53. However I am going to continue to push a project that I believe will happen-- the 120 bypass. I will of course advocate for 53 no matter where I am as an elected official, but we should also be pragmatic and focus on the doable.

That Route 53 Thinga-ma-jiggy Heats Up!

I got this email about a week ago from a person who could not have summed up the frustration for roads and Route 53 in particular. I am a strong supporter of 53, but have always thought that the window closed many years ago when we as a county could not get on the same page. The emailer asked me to answer and answer I will tomorrow. His email strongly outlines the level of frustration about transportation and the lack of it in Western Lake County and in Eastern McHenry

As a resident of neighboring Volo, I enjoy regularly visiting your blog and strongly agree with many of your viewpoints, in particular the need for the proposed Advocate Hospital, as well as the Route 120 bypass. With that said, I wanted to mention a couple of recent articles I read in the Chicago Tribune and Daily Herald. The articles stated that the Illinois Tollway Authority has officially authorized its staff (on Thurs,12/20/07) to prioritize its most critical proposed projects (now that 355 South Extension is complete), with the Route 53 extension specifically mentioned, along with the Prarie Parkway and Illiana Expressway. Here are the links: to the article in the Daily Herald and the Chicago Tribune.

Now, while I'm well aware of how long this project has been on the table, this seems like a great opportunity for local elected officials in Lake County who support the extension to get together with one uniform voice to finally push this forward. It seems that overwhelmingly the residents and villages of Lake County support the extension and this seems like as good as an opportunity as ever to attempt to move forward and become the next top priority project for the Illinois Tollway. In particular, when I reviewed the other projects on the table listed in the articles, the Route 53 extension actually seems like the most sensible/needed, with the strongest case for, with the longest standing proposal, and ironically, the one with the most support for it. Additionally, with the significant residential growth in Northern/Western Lake County over the past several years and a large percentage of those residents needing to commute south and/or east for work, it seems that a significant effort now has the potential to create quite a public buzz in favor of the extension. Further, doesn't the state already own virtually all/a good portion of the land needed to complete the extension (as marked by the FAP 342 signs)?

I'm also aware that there are one or two key villages (representing a very small percentage of the surrounding population) who have always strongly opposed the extension, but in reality, any project will always have some percentage of resistors to change, no matter how important it is to the overall surrounding communities affected. I believe the same was the case for the 355 south extension for some time. Additionally, I have seen a wide variety of elected officials (both Democrat and Republican) whose jurisdiction's are directly affected, as well as personally spoken to residents I work with who live in the immediate vicinity of the one or two key villages opposing, who strongly support the extension.

At your earliest convenience, if you could let me know your thoughts on these recent articles and any possibilities that you think may exist now that haven't over the past several years, that would be great. As you've probably noticed, I'm very passionate, yet frustrated about the decades of delays for this extension. It's one of the most overwhelmingly obvious proposed extension projects needing completion that I'm aware of and would like to see it fianlly happen. Lastly, I realize funding has been brought up as a big issue (understandably), however, where did the $700-$800 million come from to enable the I-355 extension to be constructed (within a few years time no less)?

120 Project Status Update

Recently I got an update from Transcom and the Lake County Department of Transportation on the status of the Illinois Route 120 Corridor Feasibility Study. We have a variety of task forces working on the project and this is an approximation of where we are.

Public Information Task Force

• Public Information Task Force leading the majority of the work with assistance from Lake County Partners Potential Task Force meeting to be scheduled for November

Environmental & Stormwater Impact Task Force

• Initial data collection completed including GIS from all task forces Data reviewed and base maps created Field visits by TranSystems and Roux scheduled for October 23 to evaluate sensitive environmental resources.

Land Use, Economic Development & Municipal Impact Task Force

• Reviewing data collection and task force studies Field visits by TranSystems and Lakota with Task Force Chair Dennis Sandquist scheduled for October 19 to discuss land use studies

Technical Task Force

• Received traffic data from County
  
• Requested traffic data from IDOT
  
• Traffic counts for the eastern portion of the corridor completed prior to IL 120 at I-94 construction began
  
• Traffic counts for the western portion of the corridor began after the completion of the Fairfield / Gilmer interchange and to be completed by October 18
  
• Met with CMAP regarding CMAP preparing regional traffic models for various scenarios
• Existing 2030 projected with LCTIP IL 53 expressway option and with IL 120 Bypass
  
• 2030 projected with LCTIP IL 53 arterial option and with IL 120 Bypass 2030 projected without IL 53 and with IL 120 Bypass
  
• 2030 projected without IL 53 and without IL 120 Bypass CMAP has completed the existing model and one of the four projected models and estimates completion of the final three projected models by the end of November
  

• TranSystems has begun creating sub-regional traffic models based on CMAP regional traffic models calibrated to provided traffic data and counts
  
• Character of Road studies to move forward after further traffic, land use, and financing studies
  
• Placement of Road studies to move forward after further character of road and environmental studies

LA Can't Drive

I came across this website in one of my late night surfing trips and thought it was quite funny. I know many of us can identify with whats going on here. I think that LA is a bit more extreme then some of the goofiness we see here in Lake County. Careful there is some salty language on here

Taping of Comcast Newsmakers

Earlier this week I taped a Comcast Newsmakers show which is a daily five-minute interview segment which airs at :24 and :54 minutes past the hour on CNN Headline News sponsored by Comcast. It was a lot of fun and a nice opportunity to talk up your community and the issues surrounding it. The show is hosted by veteran, award winning news anchor Paul Lisnek. Who definitely made me feel good about the whole process.

Naturally I talked about three things, transportation, hospitals and economic development, with a little bit about this blog thrown in for good measure. The whole process was quite efficent and the 5 minutes went by quickly as well.

Many thanks to Gwendolyn McNutt, Comcast Community Affairs Manager, Paul Lisnek for making me feel comfortable and Frank Deuel, Comcast Government Affairs Manager for being helpful as well.

I am not sure when they air, but when I find out I will let you all know! You get to some fun things as a Mayor and this was certainly one of them!

Fairfield and Gilmer Open

Here is a press release from Lake County on this wonderful news! I will be curious to see if the opening will relieve the backups into 176. Logic says yes, but when is a commute logical!

The Lake County Division of Transportation will open the remaining leg of the new Fairfield and Gilmer Road interchange, near the Village of Wauconda, to all traffic beginning at 6:00 A.M. on Saturday, September 15. The intersection has been completely closed to traffic since May in order to permit the County's contractor to reconstruct this intersection as an interchange with Gilmer Road elevated over Fairfield Road. Construction of this $9.2 million improvement was started in 2006. It is the first grade-separated interchange to be constructed on the County Highway system.

Fairfield Road, the west leg of Gilmer Road and the connecting ramp were opened to traffic on August 15th. The east leg of Gilmer Road and the bridge on Gilmer Road are now complete and the entire project will open to traffic as scheduled on Saturday.

This interchange improvement replaces the previous heavily congested four-way stop sign intersection with a grade-separated design. Beginning Saturday, the improvement will carry traffic along Gilmer Road on an overpass crossing Fairfield Road. Traffic passing through the intersection on either Gilmer or Fairfield Road will flow freely without having to slow or stop as would be necessary with a conventional traffic signal. A connecting ramp has been constructed between the north leg of Fairfield Road and the west leg of Gilmer Road to allow traffic to travel between Gilmer Road and Fairfield Road.

"I wish to thank motorists for their patience during this construction effort," said Marty Buehler, Director of Transportation for Lake County. "This is a significant improvement for highway users in southwest Lake County and I know that everyone involved with this project has worked very hard to open it to traffic on-time."

In addition to the improvements to the Gilmer and Fairfield Road interchange, Lake County has installed traffic signals at the intersection of Fairfield Road and Bonner Road. This traffic signal replaced the multi-way stop signs which were installed to facilitate traffic movements during the Fairfield Road closure detour. Information concerning this project can be found on the Lake County Division of Transportation website at www.co.lake.il.us/dot.

Cameras on Traffic Lights-- Is it Big Brother? Or Something Entirely Different!

I had a great question from a loyal reader Caroline M who asked me about the cameras in the traffic lights at Amarias and Cedar Lake just north of 60. Its not a system that we control but it’s part of Lake County Department of Transportation relatively new transportation management system called Passage—Intelligent Transportation System.

It allows managers at the HQ in Libertyville to monitor traffic throughout the county. All new intersections will have cameras installed on them, and I think there are numerous retrofits going on of other intersections as well. They also use telemetry installed in the roads and other cameras to determine road conditions and adjust timings of lights.

They have a marvelous website here that has real time traffic information for Lake County, I have been using the site for awhile, and am embarrassed that I have not blogged about it before becuase for awhile I was able to decide to drive the "back roads" or Route 12, when Fairfield and Gilmer were blocked!

Big News! Fairfield is Opening Tommorrow!

The Fairfield and Gilmer road project is nearly finished! Tomorrow the 15th the road will open completely for Fairfield and parts of Gilmer road as well, however some work will continue until the middle of September. Excellent news, and if you want to see a picture of my most recent post on the subject go here!

Fairfield and Gilmer Update

I went past the barricades at Fairfield and 60 last Sunday to see what was going on at the Gilmer intersection. Looked great, and more importantly nearly done!

Road Construction Update

Townline Road-- The project consists of widening Townline Road from Cedar Lake Road west to Bacon Road to a three lane cross section, installing storm sewer and constructing a bike path. The construction work will include hot-mix asphalt roadway construction, curb and gutter installation, bike path construction, storm sewer construction, ditch grading, and parkway restoration.

The construction of Townline Road started this week. (see picture at right) The Contractor began earth excavation and storm sewer installation this week. Curb and gutter installation is scheduled for the week of July 16th and asphalt installation is scheduled for the week beginning July 30th. The project is anticipated to be complete in mid August.

Cedar Lake Road-- Cedar Lake Road, Stage 1 is a Lake County Division of Transportation project that is nearing the end of construction. The work performed on Cedar Lake Road is expected to be complete by July 18th with Cedar Lake Road scheduled to be open at this time. North of the intersection of Bacon Road and Cedar Lake Road, Bacon Road will become a cul-de-sac. Bacon Road at Cedar Lake Road is expected to be closed permanently on July 18th and at this time the cul-de-sac will be constructed.

Fairfield and Gilmer-- The project is a few weeks ahead of schedule at last report from the County becuase of the lack of rain although it has rained more recently so we can only hope!

Some Road Relief in Sight? Lets Hope So!

Tonight is a 120 Byapss Corridor Planning Council meeting at the Round Lake Police and Public Works Facility on Townline Road, we will finally have a consultant (pending board ratification) and the next few meetings we will be getting into the meat of the project! To that end I want to talk about transportation and funding. While I am not a 100% supporter of all this coalition is proposing I think alot of the ideas proposed here bear study. I bolded one section that is quite interesting. I have some comments and information at the bottom of the article.

The Transportation for Illinois Coalition (TFIC), a diverse group of statewide and regional business, labor, industry, not-for-profit and governmental organizations, calculates the State’s transportation infrastructure needs an additional $5 billion per year over the next five years. This can be achieved with an approximate $2 billion revenue increase through bonding with a multi-year payment schedule and pay-as-you-go financing.

“Transportation funding has not gotten its needed attention,” said Michael T. Carrigan, president of the Illinois AFL-CIO and TFIC co-chair. “Transportation is the resource on which everything else depends and putting off investment for even one more year is not an option. Every day sends our already deteriorating network into further disrepair, undermining our ability to pay for other vital government programs and ultimately putting Illinois’ economy, jobs and families at risk. The Governor and General Assembly must act now.”

New funds are critically needed to reverse years of decline and neglected maintenance in our
transportation networks, as well as, to finance expansion, modernization, and congestion relief. It is necessary to increase the taxes and fees dedicated to constructing and maintaining transportation networks from time to time because the funding sources do not keep up with inflation or the rising cost of building materials. Increased investment in our transportation networks is required to sustain commerce and promote job growth in Illinois, while making travel easier and improving the quality of life for everyone.

The Coalition also recommends increasing the sales tax that is levied within the six county RTA region to sustain public transit operations in Northeastern Illinois. The Transportation for Illinois Coalition supports for expansion of gaming in Illinois and recommends $500 million dollars of the new revenue generated from the gaming industry be dedicated annually to infrastructure funding for public transit systems. The Coalition further recommends that additional revenue generated from the gaming industry be used to halt diversions from the state road fund that are currently being used to finance governmental purposes other than investing in improving highway infrastructure.

“It is time that our legislators move forward with a bill that adequately funds Illinois’ transportation infrastructure,” said Doug Whitley, president of the Illinois Chamber of Commerce and TFIC co-chair. “We are the nation’s transportation hub and our entire economy is built on this infrastructure. It is imperative that we protect and advance this vital asset. TFIC is prepared to support new levies from appropriate sources to fund the needed investment.”

Except for a modest $200 million increase for mass transit, which falls short of the $2 billion a year in increased funding RTA needs, the Governor's proposed capital budget for FY2008 does not include increased funding for infrastructure improvements or new capital funding for airports, rail passenger improvements or the CREATE rail freight congestion program. Further, his proposed capital program only calls for $1.875 billion for highways, a cut of $100 million from this year's level.

Illinois’ last comprehensive transportation funding program was Illinois FIRST, enacted in 1999. The remaining funds under Illinois FIRST were disbursed three years ago. Since 2003, state capital spending for highways and transit has been cut by more than 60 percent ($1.2 billion a year), and the number of miles of state highways repaired and improved each year has dropped from about 1,200 in 2003 to a proposed 360 for 2007.

Without adequate funding, Illinois transportation systems are quickly grinding to a halt. Thousands of miles of highways, roads and bridges are in disrepair, bottlenecked rail lines in northeastern Illinois are affecting regional and national commerce and aging public transit systems, as well as ever worsening congestion on urban and suburban roads, are frustrating commuters.

TFIC is dedicated to working with the General Assembly to ensure the passage this year of a comprehensive transportation infrastructure bill that is sufficient to address the needs of highways, bridges, local roads, freight rail grade separations to relieve urban congestion, inter-city passenger rail, public transit, paratransit and local airport. It is imperative to assure adequate state funds exist to supplement federal dollars allocated for many of the state’s transportation projects.

TFIC is a diverse group of statewide and regional business, labor, industry, not-for-profit and governmental organizations that have joined together in a united and focused effort to support a strong transportation alliance for Illinois. The Coalition takes a comprehensive approach and seeks to speak with one voice for all of Illinois when it comes to transportation funding needs at the federal and state level. This comprehensive approach involves all modes of transportation, including rail, air, water, highways and mass transit.

For more information about TFIC, visit www.TFICIllinois.org.

Note: The bolded text in the article above referes to Senate Bill 572 which has an ammendment in the house which says on page 40 of the ammended bill:

One-third of those taxes collected in DuPage, Kane, Lake, McHenry, and Will Counties under Section 4.03 shall be distributed by the Authority to those counties based on collections of the tax within each county. The County Board of each county shall use amounts it receives from the Authority to fund operating and capital costs of public transportation services or facilities or to fund other transportation purposes, including road, bridge, public safety, and transit purposes intended to improve mobility or reduce congestion in the county and to advance the goals and objectives set out in the Strategic Plan of the Authority.

Okay what does that mean in plain english, if this bill passes and is signed by the Governor. Lake County could potentailly recieve $29 million a year in transportation funding in addtion to what it gets now!

Don't get your hopes up becuause this bill has some nasty little other features that may not pass or may be stricken, but all in all if it does pass, its a sizeable chuck of change for county roads!

The Extended Cedar Lake Road Takes Shape

The extension of Cedar Lake road northwards from where it splits into Bacon is moving along quite swiftly. This picture is at Meadow Lane looking north.

During the construction the process of improving Townline Road will also take place as well. After this process takes place, there will be a "pause" and the extension will then take its next move all the way up to 120, completing the project with signals at Cedar Lake Road and 120, and signals at Cedar Lake and Townline.

Thanks to Lakewood Homes building the first stretch of Cedar Lake Road from 60 and most importantly the improvement of the intersection there, we will have this project completed 4-5 year ahead of when it fell on the Lake County master plan. While it takes a long time anyway this way, the original plan had it being completed in 2012-13 in one fell swoop. I am quite proud of the village's ability to move this project forward quicker then it was supposed to be done.

Breaking News-- My Commute was Normal!

Can you believe it? I still can't! I left at my normal time and drove down Fish Lake Road until Gilmer then drove along Gilmer until Callahan, and then on to Old Gilmer, right on to Gossell to Fairfield, where traffic was backed up from 176 to Bonner, which is sort of longer then usual, but not noticably longer. I arrived at my office in Arlington Heights at my normal time plus 4 minutes!

I am sure many of you may have differnt versions of your commute, feel free to share them in the comments! Be interesting reading to be sure!

NOTE: The comment is correct Allanson was wrong it was Callahan!

More on Gilmer and Fairfield Road Closure Information

The Lake County Department of Transportation has a nice flyer that shows the project and has some more details about the project here. The highlights from the flyer are below

When the project is completed, Gilmer Road will pass over Fairfield Road, allowing free flowing traffic movement at all times. A connector road between the north leg of Fairfield and the west leg of Gilmer will accommodate turning vehicles.

The intersection closure is necessary in order to complete the majority of the construction work in one season. Lake County has scheduled this closure during the summer months, when school is out of session, and is requiring the contractor to work an accelerated and strict schedule in an effort to limit the impact to motorists.

In addition I took the artist's rendering from the flyer and its above showing what's going on when its finished.

Fairfield and Gilmer Road Intersection to Close this Summer

This is a painful post to write since I commute this way to my day job! Here is a great link to the project web page at Lake County Department of Transportation

Lake County travelers who use Fairfield and Gilmer roads near the Village of Wauconda are likely familiar with the traffic jams at this intersection. The Lake County Division of Transportation (DOT) is embarking on an intersection reconstruction project that will ease congestion in this area long-term. However, Lake County asks for residents’ patience during the short-term.

DOT will close the intersection of Fairfield and Gilmer Roads, near the Village of Wauconda, from May 15 through September 15. In an effort to limit the impact on motorists, Lake County is doing this project during the summer months, when school is out of session, and requiring the contractor to work an accelerated and strict schedule. DOT will place supplemental signage near the intersection to raise awareness in advance of the commencement of the project. DOT staff will also hand-deliver informational flyers to motorists in the days leading up to the closure. “Extraordinary measures have been taken on this project to limit the impact on motorists that use this intersection,” Marty Buehler, Lake County Director of Transportation/County Engineer said. “Every effort is being made to complete this construction as quickly as possible so that users can enjoy the benefits of the completed improvement.”

When the project is complete, this intersection will be an overpass allowing Gilmer Road to pass over Fairfield Road. Traffic passing through the intersection will flow freely without having to slow or stop at the intersection as would be necessary with a conventional traffic signal. A connecting road will be constructed between the north leg of Fairfield Road and the west leg of Gilmer Road to allow traffic to travel between Gilmer Road and Fairfield Road.

The intersection will be closed until August 15. Beginning on August 15, Fairfield Road, the west leg of Gilmer Road and the connecting road will be open to traffic. The east leg of Gilmer Road will open to traffic on September 15. Motorists can visit www.lakegov.info/roadwork to learn more about this project, view maps, updates, and detour information.

There will be two detour routes for this project; the Fairfield Road detour will be Illinois Route 60, to Illinois Route 120, Belvidere Road, to U.S. Route 12, Rand Road, to Bonner Road (see map above). The Gilmer Road detour will be Illinois Route 120, Belvidere Road, to Illinois Route 60, to Illinois Route 176.

Townline Closures

Townline Road between Bacon Road and the future Cedar Lake Road is scheduled for construction in late summer of 2007. Currently, Townline Road is a two-lane rural roadway with gravel shoulders and no median.

After construction, Townline Road will be a two-lane urban roadway with curb and gutter and a painted median. A left-turn lane from westbound Townline Road to southbound Bacon Road will be added as well as turn lanes at the intersection of Townline Road and Cedar Lake Road once the Cedar Lake Road project has been completed.

A bike path will be built on the south side of Townline Road to extend the current bike path west and all private driveways and parkways will be restored to their preconstruction state. The estimated cost of construction for this project is $765,000.

Village Road Improvements

It's budget time again in the village, and as part of my preparation I was struck by our road improvement programs over the last few years. As I looked at what we are budgeting for this year. I took a look back at what we have done in the last 6 years we have spent over $5.1 million dollars on road improvements from CDBG funds, MFT funds (special census helps here) and a couple of grants to improve our most needy streets.

At the beginning of my time in office 6 years ago I sat down with the village engineers and directed them to do a comprehensive look at all our street issues and evaluate our streets from worse to best We then planned out a program to focus our money on them in that order. I am proud to say that the trustees and I have stuck to this program through thick and thin.

Most of these roads and streets are in the older sections of town so I was able to get a hold of a map that shows where the road improvements have been done. The center of the map is roughly the train station. I have the map available as a PDF if you want to look at it in a little more detail.

120 Corridor Planning Council Last Night

Last night was a 120 corridor Planning Council Meeting, I am not going to write about the discussion of bylaw changes and discussions on how to get the Request for Proposal funding (RFP) moving, but I am going to include the copy of a letter that I wrote in my capacity as Chair of the 120 CPC to the Daily Herald and other area newspapers last week. This letter was published in the Daily Herald on Monday the 6th.

Get involved with Route 120 planning
The need for improved east-west corridors through Lake County becomes crystal clear as more than 500,000 motorists sit in traffic each day in a county that'’s one of the fastest growing in the state.
In particular, Route 120 from Green Bay Road in Waukegan in the east to the McHenry County line in the west, was identified as the number one priority at last year'’s Lake County Transportation Summit; part of a bipartisan effort to combine Lake County'’s 12 votes in Springfield to more effectively deal with transportation issues.
While the Lake County and Illinois Departments of Transportation pinpointed Route 120 as a critical traffic bottleneck, hundreds of residents also have expressed their concern by speaking at public forums and by posting Web site comments.
A state grant to begin feasibility planning for improving the corridor has recently been approved. The targeted area traverses Waukegan, Libertyville, Gurnee, Wauconda, Mundelein, Hainesville, Round Lake, Round Lake Park, Volo and Grayslake. In addition, we have obtained $2 million in federal funding for engineering.
While support for the Route 120 corridor has been overwhelming, some questions still exist that should be addressed.
First: the Route 120 corridor has no connection to plans for the extension of Route 53 --— an issue that has been shelved in Springfield for lack of a budget and has had a polarizing effect on residents. That said, highways can'’t be built in a vacuum. Existing Route 53 rights-of-way will be considered in the planning of Route 120 in order to save time and taxpayer dollars, and plans must incorporate north-south connections along Route 120, whether or not Route 53 is built. And while all sorts of options are being studied, the possibilities of roundabouts and other ways to speed traffic flow must be considered only in the context of future growth.
Second: although feasibility studies have not yet begun, residents have weighed in with assumptions and dire predictions about the effects of the corridor on area homeowners and visiting wildlife. While the exact location of Route 120 has not been determined, every effort will be made to ensure that the corridor is planned with care and an eye to protecting the quality of life as well as our precious natural resources.
To get the facts about the Route 120 planning and implementation process, we urge you to get involved. Meetings of the Route 120 Corridor Planning Council are open to the public; the dates are posted regularly in this newspaper and on the Web site, www.120now.com.
There, you''ll also find detailed information about the Route 120 corridor. Let's act now to ease traffic congestion and make Lake County a more enjoyable place to live and work.

Sincerely
Bill Gentes
Mayor of Round Lake
Chair, 120 Corridor Planning Council
Member, Executive Committee Lake County Transportation Alliance

Gilmer and Fairfield Construction Update

Significant, long-awaited road improvement underway Work begins on Fairfield and Gilmer Road interchange improvement in southwest Lake County.

The four-way stop sign at the intersection of Fairfield Road and Gilmer Road in the Wauconda area has been the scene of long traffic back-ups during the morning and evening rush hours, and significant residential and commercial development occurring in Wauconda, Volo and McHenry County will only add to the current congestion problem.

Improvements to the intersection that will bring some relief are set to begin with the award of a $9.2 million construction contract to Berger Excavating Contractors, Inc. of Wauconda, according to the Lake County Division of Transportation.

Upon completion in late 2007, the improvement will carry traffic on Gilmer Road on an overpass crossing Fairfield Road. Traffic passing through the intersection on either Gilmer or Fairfield Road will flow freely without having to slow or stop as would be necessary with a conventional traffic signal.

"This is an innovative approach that will help motorists that are currently contending with a great deal of congestion at that location," said Diana O'Kelly, Chair of the Lake County Board Public Works and Transportation Committee. "We are very anxious to complete this improvement and make it available to our residents."

Utility relocation work has been underway for the past several months with road construction starting this fall. Temporary widening of Fairfield Road is necessary to construct a retaining wall this fall and winter on the east-side of the road.

Major traffic impacts due to a three month closure of the intersection will occur beginning in May 2007. The road closure is necessary to allow for excavation work and the construction of a bridge overpass on Gilmer Road.

Lake County structured the construction contract so that the intersection closure would occur over the summer months when school is out of session. The contractor will be required to work an accelerated schedule, including night and weekend work, and will assume the risk of weather-related impacts. Significant financial charges will be assessed daily against the contractor if the road is not opened on schedule.

"We have taken extraordinary measures on this project to ensure that we can limit the impact on motorists," said Marty Buehler, County Director of Transportation/County Engineer. "A project of this size will be a challenge for the commuters in the southwest part of Lake County during rush hour and we are doing what we can to get the project completed quickly".

Hopefully Help is on the Way for 60 and Peterson

Lake County has applied for a permit with the Illinois Department of Transportation to construct left turn lanes on Illinois Route 60 at Peterson Road. There is currently one lane in each direction at that location on Route 60 and it is shared by both left turners and drivers continuing straight through the intersection. One driver making a left turn can hold-up traffic for an entire cycle of the traffic signal.

Lake County is proposing to do the minimum amount of work necessary to add the turn lanes and modify the traffic signal equipment. The work is planned for this fall to help motorists that will need to utilize Illinois Route 60 as an alternate route during construction of the intersection at Fairfield Road and Gilmer Road in 2007.

Results from the Transportation summit

You don't have to rely on my imperfect note keeping at the LCTA Transportation summit last week for the results anymore, because I have a copy linked to this post here. I glanced at them and I was pretty close on all the important ones.

I have a busy day today, speaking today in Rockford, dropping by the Valley Lakes festival, and one other block party. As well as squeezing two soccer games in on TV, thank god for VCR's!

Traffic Woes Coming

I was not going to post today because I was running late this morning, but as I drove to work and sat in traffic I noticed the sign indicating traffic information could be found at www.lakegov.info so when I got to work I went to the site and looked up the project at Fairfield and Gilmer (the one I was sitting at when I saw the sign) interesting site.

This intersection will contain a tunnel when they are done! Imagine that, 4 way stop sign to a tunnel, that's quite the jump in service level! Anyway what I could not find was when the road will shut down because a few months ago I read an article about the date of the shut down, and planned to blog on it, but got sidetracked. I will now be on a mission to find the information and post it here. I have some thoughts on how those of us who commute down Fairfield can avoid the mess as we go South on the 53-less county roads!