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Weekend lane closures on Veterans Memorial Tollway I-355

Construction on Bridge Joint work between 22nd Street and Illinois Route 53, and between Army Trail Road and Butterfield Road, will continue on weekends throughout the summer

Lane closures are scheduled this weekend on the southbound Veterans Memorial Tollway (I-355) between 22^nd Street in Lombard and Illinois Route 53 in Glen Ellyn for bridge joint repair work. Delays are expected.

Weather permitting, beginning on Friday, June 25, at 8 p.m. lane closures on southbound I-355 between 22^ndStreet and Illinois Route 53 are scheduled to begin and continue as needed into Monday, June 28. Traffic will be reduced to one lane by 9 p.m. on Friday, and by noon on Saturday, June 26, two lanes are scheduled to be open to traffic for the rest of the weekend. All lanes are scheduled to reopen by 6 a.m. on Monday, June 28, dependent on concrete curing.

Additional closures, including ramp detours, are scheduled in July at other locations along I-355.

Road construction concrete pavement worker. Photo courtesy of Ray Hanania

Electronic message signs and construction signage will be put in place to alert drivers in advance of lane closures. Up-to-date closure information will be posted on the Tollway website in the Daily Construction Alert. All work is weather dependent.

Weekend work is expected to continue through the summer at various locations in both directions on I-355 between Army Trail Road and Butterfield Road. In 2021, the Illinois Tollway is completing mainline bridge joint repair work, as well as median barrier removal and replacement, pavement repairs, roadway lighting and electrical work, as well as other minor miscellaneous work along I-355. The lane closures are necessary to safely accommodate a work zone and maintain access for traffic. In addition, the work will necessitate overnight closures of several ramps at the Roosevelt Road and Army Trail Road interchanges later this summer. Detours will be posted.

Work Zone Safety

The Illinois Tollway is committed to ensuring the Veterans Memorial Tollway (I-355) remains safe for both drivers and workers during construction, which is part of the agency’s overall commitment to roadway safety.

Work zone speed limits are in effect in all construction zones 24/7 and drivers should continue to watch for changing traffic patterns and use caution, especially when workers are present.

The Illinois Tollway reminds motorists that the “Move Over Law” requires motorists to change lanes or to slow down and proceed with caution when passing any vehicle on the side of the road with hazard lights activated. If you see flashing lights ahead, please move over or slow down.

Illinois State Police have zero tolerance for drivers speeding in work zones or failure to comply with the Move Over Law. The minimum penalty for speeding in a work zone is $250 and can include up to a $25,000 fine and a 14-year jail sentence for hitting a roadway worker. Penalties for failure to slow down or move over for a vehicle on the shoulder with flashing lights includes up to a $10,000 fine, 2-year suspension of driving privileges and jail time, in extreme cases.

About Move Illinois

The Illinois Tollway’s 15-year, $14 billion capital program, Move Illinois: The Illinois Tollway Driving the Future, is improving mobility, relieving congestion, reducing pollution, creating as many as 120,000 jobs and linking economies throughout the region. The first nine years of Move Illinois is on schedule and within budget, delivering the rebuilt and widened Jane Addams Memorial Tollway (I-90) as a state-of-the-art 21^st century corridor and opening a new interchange connecting the Tri-State Tollway (I-294) to I-57. Progress continues on projects addressing the remaining needs of the existing Tollway system, delivering the Elgin O’Hare Western Access Project and reconstructing the Central Tri-State Tollway (I-294).

About the Illinois Tollway

The Illinois Tollway is a user-fee system that receives no state or federal funds for maintenance and operations. The agency maintains and operates 294 miles of roadways in 12 counties in Northern Illinois, including the Reagan Memorial Tollway (I-88), the Veterans Memorial Tollway (I-355), the Jane Addams Memorial Tollway (I-90), the Tri-State Tollway (I-94/I-294/I-80) and the Illinois Route 390 Tollway.

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Ray Hanania

Ray Hanania is an award-winning opinion columnist, author & former Chicago City Hall reporter (1977-1992). A veteran who served during the Vietnam War and the recipient of four SPJ Peter Lisagor Awards for column writing, Hanania writes weekly opinion columns on mainstream American & Chicagoland topics for the Southwest News-Herald, Des Plaines Valley News, the Regional News, The Reporter Newspapers, and Suburban Chicagoland.

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Hanania also writes about Middle East issues for the Arab News, and The Arab Daily News criticizing government policies in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Hanania was named "Best Ethnic American Columnist" by the New America Media in November 2007, and is the 2009 recipient of the SPJ National Sigma Delta Chi Award for column writing.

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