Chicago construction on Jane Byrne Interchange to wrap up this year, IDOT says
Major work, including northbound, southbound lanes; Jackson, Adams bridges; work on Ida B. Wells, I-290 ramps, should soon be done
CHICAGO (WLS) -- After years of construction, the Illinois Department of Transportation said work on the Jane Byrne Interchange is expected to wrap up this year.
"We are actually scheduled to complete major work by December of this year," said Eric Ray, IDOT District 1 area construction supervisor. "That includes the northbound and southbound lanes and also the Jackson and Adams Street bridges, work on Ida B. Wells and 290 and the ramps that connect them."
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He said the project began back in 2013. It's taken this long to complete because of all the interstates that are connected there. It wasn't feasible to close them down to complete the work, so crews had to work around the best they could.
"In a city like Chicago, shutting down all the interstates to the downtown area would cripple the city. We have to keep traffic moving, and that just complicates the work," said Ray.
The project has included dozens of bridges and interstate to interstate ramps.
