HELLO VISITOR LOGIN OR REGISTER HOME DELIVERY PERKS ADVERTISE JOBS CARS HOMES APARTMENTS DEALS MORE CLASSIFIED

71° F Chicagoland

Home News Business Sports Watchdog Entertainment Life Health Travel Opinion Search Go!

Breaking Trib Nation Skilling's weather Traffic Obits Amy Horoscopes Blogs Columns Video Photos Coupons

GO LOCAL North/northwest suburbs South/Southwest suburbs West suburbs Naperville News from your neighborhood Go to Triblocal Crime

Home > News > Chicagoland Top local stories Governors agree to partner on Illiana Insider: Blago planned to cash in Expressway Burge witness tells of screams New highway would cut congestion, boost economy, officials say Police visit cab firm as state aims to toughen law By Richard Wronski, Tribune reporter Related 7:33 p.m. CDT, June 9, 2010

Map: Illiana E-mail Print Share Text Size Expressway proposals In what they called an unprecedented partnership between the Topics two states, the governors of Illinois and Indiana agreed Lansing Wednesday to team up to build a new superhighway intended Pat Quinn to ease congestion, create jobs and spur economic growth.

Road Transportation But aside from its name and approximate end points — the See more topics » proposed Illiana Expressway would connect Interstate Highway 55 in Illinois with Interstate Highway 65 in the Hoosier State — ADS BY GOOGLE it's anyone's guess when the roadway would be built or how Efficient route/schedule much it would cost. multi-drop multi-depot street-level time of day special conditions etc Nevertheless, Gov. Pat Quinn and his Indiana counterpart, www.mapmechanics.com Mitch Daniels, hailed the signing of the bi-state agreement as Online Payment historic, finally setting in motion the planning process that New payment methods to encrease officials, particularly in southern Cook and Will counties, have Save on Sunday Paper profitability and turnover. sought for decades. Save on the purchase of a Sunday Chicago www.orange-business.com/payment Tribune at Jewel-Osco "We are partners," Quinn said at a signing ceremony at south suburban Lansing's municipal airport, right on the state line.

"They're our allies, and we'll work together for the betterment of both of our states and the whole region." Stanley Cup Champs! Get your Hawks gear here!

Get the delivered to your home for only $1 a week >>

Quinn said the 56-mile project would create 14,000 jobs in Illinois and provide better access to the burgeoning freight and trucking centers in Will County. The Illiana would provide an alternative to the traffic congestion along interstate highways 80, 90 and 94to the north.

Indeed, such an "outer encircling highway" to bypass Chicago was originally envisioned by Daniel Burnham in his Plan of Chicago a century ago.

In addition to the agreement that commits both states to the project, Quinn also signed legislation passed by the General Assembly last month empowering the Illinois Department of Transportation to partner with private contractors to develop, finance and manage the Illiana. Indiana's legislature approved a similar measure in March.

Later this year, the states' transportation departments will choose a consultant to start environmental impact studies and evaluate possible routes, officials said. They hope to recommend a final plan by 2015.

A feasibility study commissioned by Indiana last year envisioned three proposed routes extending west from I-65 to Interstate Highway 57 in Illinois. The study also proposed four-, six- and eight-lane options, along with another eight-lane configuration that includes four truck-only lanes.

The study estimated that building the Illiana would cost from $600 million to more than $1 billion, depending on the corridor and number of lanes.

The most recent estimate by the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning, however, put the cost of the Illinois portion of the Illiana alone at $2.87 billion.

Although it's been dubbed an "expressway," the Illiana would be built as a tollway in order to provide the necessary funding, officials said. A private consortium already operates the Indiana Toll Road.

Kristi Lafleur, a former Quinn aide who was recently named executive director of the Illinois Tollway, said Wednesday that the agency's directors will continue to study the agency's participation in the Illiana project. [email protected]

Get news, sports, and entertainment alerts on your mobile phone >>

Copyright © 2010, Chicago Tribune

ADS BY GOOGLE Around the Web Efficient route/schedule multi-drop multi-depot street-level time of day special conditions etc Sunbathers in Chicago www.mapmechanics.com Say hello to the interesting souls one meets while sunbathing in Chicago. Online Payment New payment methods to encrease profitability and turnover. www.orange-business.com/payment $3 million homes aplenty There are well over 100 homes on the North Shore going for more than $3 million.

E-mail Print Reprint Digg Twitter Facebook Home delivery Share Chicago's nightlife in pictures Take a peek inside Chicago's top clubs with Chicago's top photographers.

25 crazy World Cup photos COMMENTS (0) | Add Comment You think things fans are crazy about the Blackhawks? Just wait until the World Cup starts.

Join us on Facebook

Also on chicagotribune.com

Photos in the news Mugs in the news Celebrity sightings Your travel photos Need advice? Ask Amy

Home Classified About/Find Perks News Sports Skilling's weather Apartments Contact Us ChicagoPOINTS Breaking Breaking Traffic Cars Comments/questions Newsletter/alerts Chicagoland Bears Obits Celebrations Tips Tribune events Go to Triblocal Blackhawks Blogs Commercial Manage subscription Printers Row Lit Fest Nation/World Bulls Columns Dating Advertise Contests & Sweeps Business Cubs Newsletter/alerts Deals Twitter Puzzles Health White Sox Video For Sale By Owner Trib Nation Coupons Elections College Photos Garage sales News in Education Mobile/iPhone Watchdog Soccer TV listings Homes Our community RSS feeds Find data Golf Movie listings Jobs Our news focus Read the Trib on Kindle Obits Autos Event tickets Mortgages Photo store E-edition Schools Preps Obituaries Tribune store Archives Topics Smack Pets Scores Public records

PARTNERS: Chicago Magazine ChicagoNow CLTV RedEye Triblocal WGN Radio WGN -TV Vivelo Hoy Baltimore Sun Sun Sentinel Terms of service Privacy Feedback Chicago Tribune, 435 N. Michigan Avenue, Chicago, IL 60611

A Tribune website

converted by Web2PDFConvert.com