Illinois Tollway awards nearly $19.8 million in Construction Contracts in May 2026

***Nearly $233.9* *million invested in 2026 for Move Illinois and Bridging the Future projects***

The Illinois Tollway Board of Directors today approved three new construction contracts totaling nearly $19.8 million at its May Board meeting including work advanced as part of the Bridging the Future capital plan.

Nearly $233.9 million in contracts has been approved by the Tollway Board in 2026, including $44.6 million as part of the 15^th year of the Tollway’s 16-year, $15 billion Move Illinois capital program and $189.3 million as part of the seven-year, $2 billion Bridging the Future capital plan.

The Illinois Tollway’s 2026 capital program calls for investing $1.26 billion.

“Now beginning its second year, our Bridging the Future capital plan is guiding the Tollway as we invest in work that improves mobility, maintains and modernizes infrastructure to ensure we are meeting our customers’ needs,” said Illinois Tollway Executive Director Cassaundra Rouse.

Road construction cement truck. Photo courtesy of Ray Hanania

“The contracts approved today focus on preventative maintenance that extends the service life of our bridges and keeps the system in a state of good repair.”

Construction contracts awarded in May include:

An $8.6 million contract to K-Five Construction Corp., Westmont, IL, for pavement and structural rehabilitation on the Veterans Memorial Tollway (I-355) from I-55 to Army Trail Road.
A $5.3 million contract to Rausch Infrastructure, Des Plaines, IL, for bridge rehabilitation on the Tri-State Tollway (I-94/I-294) from Deerfield Road to Lake Cook Road and Algonquin Road to Sanders Road.
A $5.8 million contract to Lorig Construction Co., Des Plaines, IL, for systemwide structural rehabilitation.

The May contracts include 11 certified disadvantaged, minority- and women-owned business enterprise (D/M/WBE) firms, as well as five certified veteran-owned firms. Commitments for D/M/WBE participation range from 18.15 percent to 23.03 percent per contract and commitments for veteran participation range from 2 percent to 4.39 percent per contract.

Overall, more than $12.2 billion has been invested by the Illinois Tollway since 2012, with more than $3.2 billion of that total committed to small, diverse and veteran-owned firms. In addition, the capital program has created or sustained an estimated 152,930 total jobs as of April 2026.

Construction contracts for Illinois Tollway projects are competitively bid under the rules of the Illinois Procurement Code. The Illinois Tollway broadcasts all public meetings on the Tollway’s website at www.illinoistollway.com. This includes all board meetings and public bid openings. Also provided is detailed information about current Tollway construction and professional engineering services contracts in the Construction Contract Tracker.

About Move Illinois

The Illinois Tollway’s 16-year, $15 billion capital program, Move Illinois: The Illinois Tollway Driving the Future, is improving mobility, relieving congestion, reducing pollution, creating as many as 165,220 jobs and linking economies throughout the region. During the first 14 years of Move Illinois, the Tollway has delivered the new Illinois Route 390 Tollway and a rebuilt and widened Jane Addams Memorial Tollway (I-90) with its new SmartRoad corridor, as well as opened 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 new I-490 Tollway Project and reconstructing of the Central Tri-State Tollway (I-294).

About Bridging the Future

Approved by the Illinois Tollway Board of Directors in December 2024, Bridging the Futureis a seven-year, $2 billion plan designed to continue infrastructure improvements, bridging the gap between the agency’s current and next long-term capital program. Based on stakeholder feedback and engagement, Bridging the Future is addressing ongoing modernization initiatives and continuing to support investments in the people and firms working to improve regional mobility.

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 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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