IDOT Wants Your Input on 2017 Transportation Plan
The Illinois Department of Transportation is going intermodal — or, at least, its top minds are thinking in those terms as they design the transportation plan of the future.
“We’ve tended to talk about highways as highways and rail as rail and freight as freight. We need to look at them as a transportation system,” IDOT Secretary Randy Blankenhorn says on the YouTube message embedded below.
“They impact each other. There is nobody that goes just on a highway or just on a bus or just on a train. They’re using the entire system, and we’ve got to start planning in what we call that multi-modal way — that really thinks much more broadly about how people use transportation every day.”
Now, IDOT wants your input.
The challenge for transportation planners is immense. Big projects can cost millions and even billions of dollars, the funding has to be sought and won years in advance of construction and the decisions made now will have profound effects on our lives.
“Big highway and transit projects — and air projects, for that matter — take a long time from start to finish,” Blankenhorn said. “It’s not unusual for them to be 10 years from the beginning to when we’re in construction. … I really believe it’s action — or lack of action — from 20 years ago that gives us the problems today.”
Blankenhorn is asking that Kane County share the online survey that is part of IDOT’s Long Range Transportation Plan development process. The survey is quick and easy to do — and you have options to express your own views on the overarching goals — but it is brief and a little vague.
IDOT has a ton of online resources that provide outstanding information. Presented here are a few things you need to know to make informed decisions about transportation now and in the future.
We’re Part of Region 1
Kane County is part of Region 1 — the northern Illinois region that includes Chicago and the surrounding suburbs. The six counties in Region 1 are Cook, DuPage, Kane, Lake, McHenry and Will.
There are actually nine districts in the state of Illinois. Region 1 is the only area that contains just one district. Region 2, for example, includes districts 2 and 3 and encompasses a wider geographic area.
If you don’t do anything else, click on the links below. The second one — Construction Update Report for KANE COUNTY — is among the best resources for drivers in Kane County.
- Construction Projects and Studies
- Construction Update Report for KANE COUNTY
- Travel Midwest
- Construction Releases
- Sign up for Traffic Alerts
Multi-Year Transportation Programs
Maybe the most important link to understand the long-range planning is the FY 2017-2022 Proposed Highway Improvement Program. That document provides specifics, including the Summary, Guide and District Project Information.
Featured Projects Page
This page is full of information about transportation projects in our area and in areas we regularly drive. Some Kane County-specific examples are below. Be sure to click on the links to find out more about each project.
Study Pages
- Kane & Cook Counties – US 20 Project Study
- Kane & Kendall Counties – US 30 Project Study
- Kane County – IL 47 at Plato Road Project Study
- Kane County – U.S. 30 at IL 47
Project Pages
About the Long Range Transportation Plan
The vision for transportation in Illinois is to provide innovative, sustainable and multimodal transportation solutions that support local goals and grow Illinois’ economy.
All IDOT plans are designed to provide progressive and action-oriented frameworks for Illinois’ transportation system. Plan policies provide a framework to guide the sustainable development of an integrated system that is safe, efficient and reliable, and one that enhances quality of life and supports the economic prosperity of the state.
Planning Process
IDOT is in the middle of updating its 2017 State Transportation Plan. Information on where IDOT is in that process can be seen below:
Fact Sheets
For some fast information about the current state of various modes of transportation in Illinois, please refer to IDOT fact sheets below:
SOURCE: IDOT website
