After a shorter-than-usual winter break from highway construction, traffic-snarling lane closures on the Kennedy Expressway are set to begin again.
This year, the second of a three-year rehab of the highway, will focus on the reversible express lanes running down the center of the highway and the large underpass near Hubbard Street downtown. The express lanes and some lanes of regular traffic are set to close during the construction season, which is starting earlier than usual because of warm temperatures expected this winter and spring.
Full closure of the express lanes will begin March 11, weather permitting, the Illinois Department of Transportation said. But there will be shorter, overnight closures for advance work as soon as Monday.
The $150 million project, paid through the state’s capital program, is rehabbing 7.5 miles of the 10-lane highway from the I-94 split south to downtown. It includes work on 36 bridges and the highway’s reversible express lane access system, the current version of which was installed in 1996. It also includes replacing overhead signs, upgrading lighting, paving and painting, and painting and installing new lighting at the Hubbard underpass between Ohio and Lake streets.
The first phase of work took place last year in the inbound, or southbound, lanes, with two closed at a time between March and December and the express lanes open only heading toward downtown.
This year work moves to the express lanes, and in spring 2025 will move to the outbound, or northbound lanes. Two will be closed at a time, and the express lanes will be open only heading north from downtown.
This year, work will begin as soon as next week, when the express lanes are expected to close between 9 p.m. and 5 a.m. for advance work.
The week of March 11, the reversible express lanes are expected to fully close until fall. The left lane on the inbound, or southbound, Kennedy and Edens expressways will also close between the area just before the junction where the two highways join, and the express lanes entrance at Montrose Avenue.
To set up for the long-term closure, lanes and ramps will temporarily close on the Kennedy and Edens expressways for four nights the week of March 11, with various sections of the highway reduced to one or two lanes each night. The closures will begin at 9 p.m. Monday through Thursday, and lanes are expected to reopen by 5 a.m. the following morning, IDOT said.
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Lanes will also close for several months downtown near the Hubbard Street underpass for cleaning, painting and installation of LED lights, IDOT said. The left lane will be closed in each direction in the area, as will the Randolph Street ramp to the outbound, or northbound, Kennedy.
Other overnight shoulder and lane closures could take place this year between Milwaukee Avenue and Randolph Street.
The work depends on the weather and could be rescheduled.
“While we understand construction can be inconvenient, we are taking advantage of the warm weather to start early,” Transportation Secretary Omer Osman said in a statement. “The end result will be safer, more resilient infrastructure for the region long after the cones and barricades are removed.”
Lanes are expected to reopen in the fall. Until then, IDOT encourages the 275,000 drivers who use the Kennedy each day to take alternate routes and public transportation, like the nearby CTA Blue Line or Metra Union Pacific Northwest Line.