Illinois Tollway Elgin-O’Hare West Bypass, IL Route 390 from Lake St to Meacham Medinah Road

We recently had the Elgin-OHare West Bypass, Illinois Route 390 Tollway between Lake Street and Meacham Medinah Road professionally photographed, a stretch of roadway that features the first all-electronic mainline plazas within the Illinois Tollway System. For this 5.25 mile stretch of highway, Epstein was the managing partner of a Joint-Venture with GRAEF Engineering and Baxter+Woodman, to provide Phase II engineering services for improvements and to convert an existing freeway along the Elgin OHare Expressway into a toll road.

The engineering scope of services for this project included widening and resurfacing of existing mainline pavement, rehabilitation and widening of eight existing mainline bridges, construction of six new mainline tolling plazas, and resurfacing and traffic signals at cross roads. In addition, the Elgin-OHare project featured new LED lighting, barrier warrant analysis, six new noise abatement walls, highway signage and overhead structures, overhead truss dynamic message signs, erosion control, and maintenance of traffic. This project also included significant drainage improvements like new ditches with a preferred channel section and bioswales, modifications to the existing storm sewer system, and the construction of four new storm water detention basins and the expansion of an existing detention basin.

Epsteins responsibilities included overall management of the contract and team, lead engineering on the geometry and roadway component, support of structural engineering, support of local roads improvements, and highway signage.

This new tollway is more convenient for users as it eliminates stopping to collect tolls and this road also increases highway safety as cars arent slowing down, changing lanes or stopping all-together in order to make a payment. In addition, this new all-electronic road also cuts down on traffic noise and emissions are reduced through the elimination of stopping and idling at toll collection plazas.

Lastly, this project was performed on an aggressive schedule with a December 2012 notice to proceed from the Illinois Tollway and the first two contracts for noise wall advertised on April 18, 2013. In order to enhance team communication, coordination and quality while meeting the aggressive schedule a team center was established at Epsteins offices. A dedicated group of engineers and managers was collocated at our 600 West Fulton offices and this collaborative team center helped the Tollway opened this stretch of road to the public on July 5, 2016.