Construction on Kennedy Expressway still "months away" from completion

CHICAGO (CBS) -- Drivers might be understandably confused about the state of the construction along the Kennedy Expressway in Chicago.

Social media posts from the Illinois Department of Transportation and new signs going up suggest the project may be winding down for 2024, but as CBS News Chicago found out, drivers will be stuck going slow for months more.

Commuters using the Kennedy Expressway these days may be expressing frustration with this year's construction closing off access to the reversible express lanes, and other traffic constraints, causing major congestion.

But the new signs, made of resistant aluminum, are hanging higher than their predecessors and could signal reason for optimism ahead.

"Definitely exciting to see progress," said Maria Castaneda, an IDOT spokesperson. "So, of course, we're all anxious to get it completed and get it opened."

IDOT even tweeted a photo of the new signs saying "The finish line is in sight."

But it's not that simple.

IDOT has not committed to a completion date yet.

"I would say we're months away here," Castaneda said. "So we're definitely more finished than the beginning, that we were in March."

IDOT crews still need to paint stripes on the express lanes, and a lot of work, the agency said, is hidden from view. That includes something called the REVLAC system, or reversible lane access control. Crews have to lay 7-and-a-half miles of wiring, sensors, and cameras that allow them to safely transition the reversal lanes from one direction to another remotely from IDOT's site in Schaumburg.

IDOT said its crews are on track to finish as expected sometime in late fall. It's worth remembering winter officially starts on Dec. 21 this year.

The whole project is a three-phase job with the final chapter, work on the outbound lanes, beginning in the spring of 2025. IDOT officials said the work should take just about as long as the current portion, however because the reversals have two lanes. The outbound have four.

For more information on the Kennedy Expressway construction project, visit IDOT.Illinois.gov .