Illinois Route 23
Maintained by IDOT
Length:	115 mi (185.07 km)
Formed:	1918[1]
South end:	U.S. Route 14 south of Harvard
North end:	Illinois Route 116 in Pontiac
Counties:	Livingston, LaSalle, DeKalb, McHenry
Major cities:	Pontiac, Streator, Ottawa, DeKalb, Marengo
Illinois state highway system < IL 22 I-24 >

Illinois Route 23 is a north-south state highway in northern Illinois. It runs from Illinois Route 116 in Pontiac north to U.S. Route 14 south of Harvard. This is a distance of 115 miles (185 km).

Route description

Illinois 23 is a major arterial route in rural central and north-central Illinois. It is a parallel to the Interstate 39/U.S. Route 51 combination approximately 20 miles (32 km) to the west.

The road starts near downtown Pontiac and runs as the main highway north, intersecting with Interstate 55 and former U.S. Route 66. It is a two lane highway at this point. Illinois 23 then turns west and runs through Cornell, and turns back north to travel through the middle of Streator. At Ottawa, the road grows to six lanes (across two different roads) when concurrent with Illinois Route 71 — Illinois 71 joins with it to cross the Illinois River.

North of Ottawa, Illinois 23 has a full diamond interchange with Interstate 80. This is the last full interchange Illinois 23 has south of its terminus at Harvard. Illinois 23 has two additional concurrencies with U.S. Route 34 and U.S. Route 52, though no notable cities are present between Ottawa and DeKalb. Illinois 23 runs under Interstate 88 with no intersection, though access is available via two parallel roads (Peace Road and Annie Glidden Road). Between DeKalb and Sycamore, Illinois 23 has four lanes. In Sycamore, Illinois 23 briefly overlaps Illinois Route 64. After one final concurrency at Illinois Route 72 near Genoa, Illinois 23 travels over Interstate 90 with no intersection and no nearby access. It runs through Marengo and terminates south of Harvard at U.S. Route 14.

History

Illinois 23 was established in 1918 as one of the original 46 SBI routes. The routing of Illinois 23 has not changed since its establishment.

Major junctions

City	Route	Notes
Pontiac	Illinois Route 116 - Howard Street
	Interstate 55
3 mi (4.8 km) E of Cornell	Illinois Route 170 - N 1500 Road East
2 mi (3.2 km) S of Streator	Illinois Route 17 - E 3000 Road North
Streator	Illinois Route 18 - Main Street
Ottawa	Illinois Route 71 - Hitt Street, Norris Street	Concurrent for 1 mile (1.6 km)
	U.S. Route 6
	Interstate 80
6 mi (9.7 km) N of Ottawa	U.S. Route 52	Concurrent for 0.5 mi (0.8 km)
2 mi (3.2 km) S of Leland	U.S. Route 34	Concurrent for 2.5 mi (4.0 km)
0.5 mi (0.8 km) E of Waterman	U.S. Route 30 - Lincoln Street
DeKalb	Illinois Route 38 - Lincoln Highway	No direct access to Interstate 88 (Ronald Reagan Memorial Tollway)
Sycamore	Illinois Route 64 - State Street	Concurrent for a short while.
Genoa	Illinois Route 72 - Main Street	Concurrent for 1 mile (2 km).
Marengo	U.S. Route 20 - General Grant Highway	IL23 has no access to Interstate 90 (Northwest Tollway); Following US20 east will lead IL23 traffic to the tollway.
	Illinois Route 176 - Telegraph Street
1 mile (1.6 km) S of Harvard	U.S. Route 14 - Division Street

Notes

• In downtown De Kalb, Route 23 (the main north-south street) has a busy intersection with Illinois Route 38 (the main east-west street) as the Union Pacific Railroad crosses through the intersection at a diagonal. Trains routinely bring traffic in De Kalb to a halt.

References

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