Due to software integration issues and complex computer system installation, the opening of the Kennedy Expressway's reversible lanes has been pushed back to January 2025.
IDOT officials originally said the express lanes on the Kennedy in and out of Chicago -- which have been closed for nine months -- were on track to open in the fall of 2024. Drivers to and from Chicago can expect heavy congestion to continue longer than planned as the Illinois Department of Transportation says its IDOT announced the update in a press briefing Tuesday.
Officials originally said both directions of the reversible express lanes -- which have been closed for nine months -- were on track to reopen near the 2024 Thanksgiving holiday. When pressed for an update in October, IDOT said the express lanes were on schedule to open in 'late fall.' As of Tuesday, Dec. 17 -- five days until the start of Winter -- the express lanes remained closed, with testing ongoing. According to IDOT, both directions of the Kennedy Express lanes will now open 'the week of Jan. 13' of 2025. Jan. 2 will initiate the start of 'final testing' of the computer system, officials said. IDOT said 'software integration' led to the delay, adding that construction was 'more complex' due to the computers needed to run the gate system that controls the express lanes, known as the Reversible Lane Access Control, or REVLAC. Officials stressed that work is continuing behind the scenes, and acknowledged it may be frustrating for drivers to not see active crews. 'In addition to rehabilitating the bridges, the entire Reversible Lane Access Control (REVLAC) system is being rehabilitated along the reversible express lanes,' a spokesperson for IDOT told NBC Chicago in a previous statement. 'The REVLAC system controls the gates and changes the direction of traffic in the reversible lanes. The work includes installing 120 gates, controls (local and remote), cameras, electrical components, fiber optic cables and terminal blocks along the 7.5 miles. Additionally, new overhead sign structures and signs were installed. While the pavement in the express lanes is drivable their use is extremely limite
Kennedy Expressway Express Lanes IDOT Chicago Traffic Construction Delay
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