State plans Des Plaines River bridge inspections in Joliet

Inspections are scheduled to start Monday on the two Interstate 80 bridges over the Des Plaines River in Joliet.

The inspections are being done as the Illinois Department of Transportation has begun a project to replace several smaller I-80 bridges in Joliet.

The Des Plaines River bridge, too, will be replaced, although IDOT has not yet set the construction date.

The inspections that start Monday, weather permitting, will require daily lane closures on the westbound bridge until May 3, IDOT said in a news release. Lane closures and inspections then are scheduled to shift to the eastbound bridge until May 8.

The lane closures will occur between 8:30 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays and on Saturdays if necessary to minimize the impact on traffic, IDOT said.

At least two lanes in both directions will remain open during inspections. But IDOT warned motorists to expect delays and to pay close attention to flaggers and signs in the work zones.

Preliminary engineering for the replacement of the Des Plaines River bridges “is just getting started,” IDOT spokeswoman Maria Castaneda said in an email responding to questions about that project.

IDOT has not yet completed land acquisition needed for the new Des Plaines River bridges, which will be constructed while the existing bridges remain in place.

The replacement of the Des Plaines River bridges is part of a $1.2 billion I-80 project that will run 16 miles from Ridge Road in Minooka to Route 30 in New Lenox.

The I-80 project is included in IDOT’s Proposed Highway Improvement Program for fiscal 2021 through fiscal 2026.

“Construction is currently targeted for the later years of the program, contingent on plan readiness and land acquisition,” Castaneda said.

The entire I-80 project includes the addition of auxiliary lanes to reduce congestion and improvements for interchanges at Interstate 55, Larkin Avenue, and Center, Chicago, Richards and Briggs streets.

IDOT recently began advance work for the project, including pavement patching and shoulder work between the Chicago and Briggs streets interchanges.

The work is being done to accommodate traffic as smaller bridges are replaced east of the Des Plaines River. Those bridges are in the eastbound lanes at Hickory Creek, Richards Street and Rowell Avenue/Canadian National Railroad, and in the westbound lanes over over Richards Street.

Replacement of the eastbound bridges is expected to be completed in late 2022. Then, IDOT will begin replacing bridges in the westbound lanes.