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| Illinois Route 120 | |||||||||
| Maintained by IDOT | |||||||||
| Length: | 34.48 mi[1] (55.49 km) | ||||||||
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| Formed: | 1941[2] | ||||||||
| Direction: | east–west | ||||||||
| From: |  U.S. Route 14 west of Woodstock |
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| To: |  Illinois Route 131 in Waukegan |
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| Counties: | McHenry, Lake | ||||||||
| Major cities: | Woodstock, McHenry, Grayslake, Waukegan | ||||||||
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>Illinois Route 120 is a major east–west arterial in northeastern Illinois. It runs from U.S. Route 14 (Northwest Highway) west of Woodstock to Illinois Route 131 (Green Bay Rd.) in Waukegan. This is a distance of 34.48 miles (55.49 km).[1]
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Route description
Illinois 120 forms part of old U.S. 14 through Woodstock before turning east towards Waukegan. It passes through the cities of McHenry, Volo, and Grayslake before becoming a four-lane divided highway west of Interstate 94 (Tri-State Tollway). It overlaps Illinois Route 31 through McHenry.
In McHenry the road is also called Elm Street, and east of Grayslake, the road is also called Belvidere Road, although it does not go through Belvidere.
History
SBI Route 120 originally ran from Havana to Mason City in west-central Illinois. In 1939 this became Illinois Route 119, and in 1951, U.S. Route 136. In the meantime, in 1941 Illinois 120 replaced Illinois Route 20 to avoid confusion with nearby U.S. Route 20. In 1972, the designation was removed east of Illinois 131.[2]
Future
In recent years there has been much discussion on how to improve the east–west traffic flow throughout north-central Lake County. Route 120 enters Lake county from the west as a four lane highway and then downgrades to a two lane highway less than 3 miles east, just past Illinois Route 60 and later becomes a four lane divided highway west of Hunt Club Road. Since there is heavy traffic from nearby Interstate 94 to the east as well as traffic traveling to and from McHenry County in the west, it seems logical to address this gap which is not yet four lanes. The solution to this problem was agreed to be a seven mile southern bypass around Grayslake. This has since become know as the "120 bypass".
This project is closely related to another long delayed Lake county transportation project; the Illinois Route 53 extension. The currently stalled project has been planned to extend the limited-access expressway, which carries Illinois 53 and terminates at Lake-Cook Road, north to connect to the 120 bypass, and then branch off toward US Route 12 to the west and Interstate 94 to the east. If the project were ever built, it would seem highly probable that the east–west 120 bypass would be built as a limited-access expressway to connect with the proposed north–south Illinois 53 extension which is also limited-access. The entire scope of this project; starting on Illinois 120 at Interstate 94, continuing west on the 120 bypass, and connecting with the Illinois 53 extension would greatly reduce travel times for commuters in northern Lake County trying to gain access to the western and southwestern Chicago suburbs. This would also likely mean that the same corridor would be built to interstate standards and given an interstate designation. This designation would continue on Illinois 53 traveling south into Cook County, on the already built portion of the expressway, until running into Interstate 290 which terminates at Interstate 90 in Schaumburg, approximately 7.5 miles south of Lake-Cook Road. Since there have been many delays over the decades on how to proceed with this extension, the 120 bypass project moved forward on its own as an independent project.
Concluding in the summer of 2009, a feasibility study was conducted which included public input from nearby communities as well as local government officials. Initially, the main focus for the public was selecting the road character or type of road. The alternatives considered were: a four lane roundabout boulevard, four lane signalized boulevard, six lane signalized arterial, and six lane expressway. In December 2008, it was revealed that the four lane boulevard option was selected in an 11-2 vote over an expressway, however it still remained open whether or not roundabouts would be used in place of traffic signals at intersections. The cost of the project was estimated at $521 million.[3] In May 2009, the preferred roadway alignment was selected.
On October 14, 2009, the Route 120 Corridor Planning Council Governance Board came to a consensus and approved a unified vision for the project which recommends that the bypass be built as a four lane arterial highway with limited-access. The next step is for the Illinois Department of Transportation to begin a Phase I Preliminary Engineering Study.[4]
References
- ^ a b Illinois Technology Transfer Center (2006). "T2 GIS Data". http://www.dot.state.il.us/gist2/select.html. Retrieved 2007-11-08.
- ^ a b Carlson, Rich. Illinois Highways Page: Routes 101 thru 120. Last updated March 15, 2005. Retrieved April 27, 2006.
- ^ Zawislak, Mick. "Four-lanes preferred for new Route 120". Daily Herald. http://www.dailyherald.com/story/?id=257504. Retrieved October 24, 2009.
- ^ "Unified Vision". 120 Now. http://120now.com/pdf/Unified_Vision_All.pdf. Retrieved November 17, 2009.
External links
- 120Now - Route 120 Corridor Planning Council
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