Resurfacing work on Route 14 between Harvard, Woodstock scheduled to begin next week

An almost six-mile stretch of U.S. Route 14 between Harvard and Woodstock is slated for resurfacing next week, which will cause daily lane closures for the next few months, officials said.

The stretch, which runs about 5.9 miles between Hughes and Hartland Road on its west side to Illinois Route 47 in the east, is expected to start May 9 and be completed in early October, according to an April 29 news release from the Illinois Department of Transportation.

IDOT will be carrying out the resurfacing project, which will cost about $3.4 million and include patching and resurfacing the road, as well as installing two dry wells to help drainage at the intersection of Hughes/Hartland Road and Route 14, according to the release. Officials did not specify where the funds were coming from.

As part of the work, those traveling can expect daytime lane closures and delays, according to the release. Access to resident homes and businesses within the work zone will be maintained throughout project, according to the release.

“Motorists … should allow extra time for trips through this area,” according to the release.

Much of the stretch lies either in Woodstock or unincorporated McHenry County and consists of two lanes. Daily traffic counts range from 7,300 vehicles to 13,100 vehicles – near the Route 14 and Route 47 intersection – according to traffic counts from the Illinois Department of Transportation.

There are not many businesses, particularly retail or those that require foot traffic, throughout the stretch, except for a few industrial buildings near Kishwaukee Valley Road, said Garrett Anderson, economic development director for Woodstock. There’s also a few north of that near the intersection of Route 14 and Illinois Route 120, he said.

“None of them have direct access onto Route 14,” he said. “It’s a fairly limited access roadway. ... This type of road volume is not going to get really slowed down by a single-lane closure.”

Whenever road work is done, some hiccups can be expected for those operating along the stretch, Anderson said. On the other hand, it’s always a good thing when roads are being invested in to improve them, he said.

Some homes also branch off the part of the road that will see work, such as the houses off Dean Street.

Hillary Lilly, 70, of Woodstock, lives off Route 14. The upcoming work combined with the road work the city is slated to start heading into summer, which could include her road, has her worried about her ability to get around town, she said.

Roads that could be included in Woodstock’s road program this year that are in the area of Route 14′s work include a stretch of Dean Street to Tryon Street, and Prairie Ridge Drive.

“It’s going to be a pain,” she said. “Everything’s under construction. ... I’ll get around. It’ll just take some creative thinking.”

Anderson said he thinks those residents will find different routes to avoid the construction.

“They know how to get around it,” he said. “There’s plenty of ways to get around it for a local.”

County Board member Larry Smith, R-Harvard, said he thinks there are several parts of Route 14 that need repairing. Up to this point, he hasn’t heard any complaints from constituents about the project. Though because it’s a state project, the county doesn’t have much say in what happens, he said.

“I would hope [residents] stay patient and are happy to see it be fixed,” he said.

Beyond carrying people to and from Woodstock and Harvard, the route is one of the area’s major roads that head into Wisconsin. Going north from Harvard, the route sees anywhere from 6,100 to 10,300 vehicles between the city and the Wisconsin/Illinois border, data from IDOT shows.

The project is part of IDOT’s efforts to improve more than 3,500 miles of highway and 9 million square-feet of bridge deck, according to the IDOT release. These projects come courtesy of the Rebuild Illinois Capital Plan, which includes more than $33 billion in improving various modes of transportation around the state.