Pol: IDOT shorted routes east of Dan Ryan
Fifth Ward Ald. Leslie A. Hairston said the traffic nightmare created by the upcoming reconstruction of the Dan Ryan Expy. will be far worse for commuters using alternate routes east of the expressway, because IDOT shortchanged repairs to ease congestion.
Hairston noted that while the Illinois Department of Transportation is pushing three arterial roads -- Ashland, Stony Island and South Lake Shore Drive -- as alternative routes for the 320,000 motorists who use the Dan Ryan, IDOT has spent millions more improving Ashland than it has the other two routes, which fall in Hairston's ward.
$8 million vs. $1.5 million
IDOT spent about $8 million to synchronize traffic signals and resurface roads on Ashland, the west alternate route, in preparation for mainline construction on the Dan Ryan, which is set to start April 1. About $1.5 million was allocated for similar repairs on Stony Island, far less than needed to accommodate extra traffic from the expressway, Hairston said.
"It's going to be a terrible traffic jam as it is," she said Tuesday. "If they see the need to do it on the west side of the Dan Ryan, it should stand to reason that they do the same on the east side."
But IDOT spokesman Mike Claffey said improvements on Ashland took precedence because "Ashland is a truck route, and Stony Island leads into Lake Shore Drive that does not allow truck traffic. Ashland had a greater need."
Claffey said IDOT would continue talking with the alderman to address her concerns.