Village officials in New Lenox have requested a copy of federal and state highway siting standards to help them analyze routes proposed for a highway linkup between Interstate Highways 80 and 57.
All five of the corridors under consideration by the Illinois State Toll Highway Authority run through either New Lenox or New Lenox Township. A sixth option under consideration calls for widening Interstate Highway 80.
Four of the five options are unacceptable, Village Administrator Russ Loebe said. New Lenox officials are on record favoring a roadway west of the town.
Loebe said New Lenox officials expect to use the standards to “show (the toll authority) the error of their ways” in considering road alignments that bisect the town.
A consultant could be hired to point out flaws in the unacceptable alignment proposals, he said.
“If things go south, you have to pull out all the stops to keep this horrible thing from happening,” he said.
Trustee Dave Batson said the village needs to know exactly what rules govern the toll authority “or the war would be kind of one-sided.”
Trustee Patrick Flynn said the toll authority may not be subject to a large number of constraints, adding, “They can do anything we can’t stop them from doing.”
Road siting is a “political process,” Mayor John Nowakowski noted, and roads are often sited in “the line of least resistance.”