Joliet’s Ruby St. Bridge will remain open, IDOT changes plan

The Ruby Street bridge in downtown Joliet will remain open until further notice, the Illinois Department of Transportation said Monday.

IDOT had planned to close the bridge Monday for upgrades that had already been pushed back a few times this year.

They were pushed back again Monday.

Downtown motorists are not likely to complain that the bridge, a key crossing over the Des Plaines River, is staying open. Movement across the river already is restricted by lane closures on the Cass Street bridge and the closing of the Brandon Road bridge south of downtown.

How long the Ruby Street bridge remains open is unclear.

“It’s postponed until further notice at this point,” IDOT spokeswoman Maria Castaneda said Monday. “This project is pretty weather-dependent. They’re going to have to not only start it while the weather is relatively mild but complete it.”

That could mean that the project is delayed until the spring if the current setback is prolonged.

Just what caused the latest delay is not clear, although Castaneda suggested that it is related to ongoing roadwork downtown.

“A lot of it is coordinating with other work,” she said. “There’s a lot happening in Joliet.”

Much of downtown Joliet is under construction for a Chicago Street improvement project and ongoing water main work.

City officials voiced concern Friday when the detour map for the Ruby Street bridge project included a street now closed for construction.

The planned Ruby Street bridge closing eventually will be done to equip the bridge for future remote control of the drawbridges now operated by bridge tenders located at each of the six drawbridges downtown and at Brandon Road. IDOT plans to move tenders to a central location at Jackson Street.

The closure planned for Monday was to continue until the end of 2024.

That project to equip the bridge for remote control has been delayed since April. But the Ruby Street bridge was closed for two weeks in May for emergency repairs.