Lake County announces $850M transportation improvement program

WAUKEGAN – The Lake County Division of Transportation has launched a new interactive dashboard displaying the more than 300 projects in its 2024-2029 Transportation Improvement Program that recently was adopted by the Lake County Board.

The program is designed to maintain the more than 900 lane miles of county highways, increase driver and pedestrian safety, improve mobility and reduce carbon emissions. The program is updated annually to show the projects planned in the current year and the next five years.

“The Lake County Board is proud to be investing more than $850 million in transportation projects over the next six years,” Lake County Board Chair Sandy Hart said in a news release. “Miles of new bike paths and sidewalks will be constructed, along with many more safety improvements. One railroad grade separation is planned while an additional two locations are being studied that would eliminate traffic backups when trains pass through.”

The 2024-2029 Transportation Improvement Program breaks down into three categories in order of priority.

“Our top priority is keeping existing infrastructure in good condition while actively seeking ways to make our transportation system safer for pedestrians and motorists,” said Jennifer Clark, Public Works and Transportation Committee chair and board member for District 15. “The program is designed to have a wide variety of projects to address local and regional transportation needs.”

1. Preservation projects keep county highway pavements, bridges, bikeways and signals in a state of good repair. These include road resurfacings, culvert replacements and bridge repairs. They are the most common type of project.

2. Modernization projects focus on increasing safety, reducing delays and improving nonmotorized transportation. These include roundabouts, traffic signals, added turn lanes, bike paths, sidewalks and pedestrian crossings.

3. Expansion projects add capacity to the system to reduce traffic congestion. These include constructing railroad/road grade separations, adding travel lanes to a road to eliminate a bottleneck and sometimes realigning an existing road.

The 2024-2029 Transportation Improvement Program shows all of LCDOT’s projects currently in the works. Check out the new interactive dashboard that integrates with LCDOT’s Project Tracker, providing more information than ever before.

“The public can view detailed project information using the same tool our team utilizes,” said Shane Schneider, LCDOT director of transportation. “This is a great way to be informed of all the LCDOT projects in your area in the coming years.”

To see the tracker, click here.