Project is first step in revitalizing corridor from U.S. 20 to Charles Street

ROCKFORD — Governor JB Pritzker and the Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) were joined on Jan 26th, by local officials and community leaders to announce a resurfacing project for South Alpine Road in Rockford. The $1.5 million project is part of a larger commitment to work with the city to find a long-term solution to improve mobility, enhance safety and provide biking, transit, and pedestrian accommodations through the entire South Alpine corridor.

“I’m proud to announce the first tranche of funding to renew South Alpine Road, improving the lives of the tens of thousands of drivers that rely on this corridor every day,” said Governor JB Pritzker. “Up and down the Rockford region, we’re restoring and rebuilding, creating jobs, and making sure working families have the opportunities and resources they need to build good lives for themselves and their families.”

“Our roadways are an essential link to the communities where families live, work, and go to school. The South Alpine Corridor is a hub in Rockford and will be greatly enhanced because of this investment provided by the historic Rebuild Illinois plan,” said Lt. Governor Juliana Stratton. “This project, one of many in the Rockford area, demonstrates the administration’s commitment to collaboration with agencies, local governments, and stakeholders in order to enhance safety, create jobs, and improve access to main streets and small businesses.”

South Alpine Road is an unmarked state route between U.S. 20 and Charles Street. The segment from Harrison Avenue to Charles Street, measuring just under a mile, is scheduled to be resurfaced starting this spring, providing a safer, smoother driving experience. Previous improvements included a traffic signal replacement at the intersection of Cleveland Avenue and Florida Drive in 2021 and resurfacing from Harrison Avenue to Sandy Hollow Road in 2014.

IDOT and the city of Rockford are teaming up to allow the city use of state funds for engineering efforts to reconstruct and modernize the South Alpine Road corridor. The city will serve as the lead agency in the effort to determine the full scope of improvements, with IDOT providing funding through construction. At the conclusion of the project, the city will accept a jurisdictional transfer of Alpine Road from the state.

The cost of preliminary engineering for the project has been identified in IDOT’s multiyear program for roads and bridges at $5 million.

“Working with our partners in Rockford, we are moving ahead to bring relief to the thousands of vehicles that rely on South Alpine Road daily,” said Illinois Transportation Secretary Omer Osman. “These interim improvements are just a first step toward creating a multimodal corridor in a busy area of the city that will improve quality of life and make South Alpine Road safer and more accessible for all residents.”

Gov. Pritzker’s historic, bipartisan Rebuild Illinois has advanced several projects in the Rockford area this year.

Others include the $6.6 million expansion of East State Street from Mid America Drive to Buckley Drive, a $12.4 million resurfacing of U.S. 20 from near Winnebago to South Main Street (Illinois 2), and the $1.3 million deck overlay of the Interstate 39 bridges over the Kishwaukee River. Working in partnership with Rockford, IDOT in the fall finished a third phase to revitalize West State Street, a $6.5 million improvement that added a new lane of traffic in each direction with green space and other features to encourage walking and biking.

A $227 million project to expand I-39 between Harrison Avenue and north of Blackhawk Road, including the west interchange with U.S. 20 in Cherry Valley, is estimated to start in 2024. The work includes reconstruction of the west U.S. 20 and Harrison Avenue interchanges and the Mulford Road bridge. A separate project will replace the Perryville Road bridge.

Additionally, Rebuild Illinois identifies $275 million to re-establish passenger rail service between Chicago and Rockford. The capital program also has invested close to $40 million in the Rockford Mass Transit District -- $32.7 million to expand and improve the 520 Mulberry Street transit facility and $6.9 million to buy alternative fuel buses and paratransit vehicles.

Passed in 2019, Rebuild Illinois is investing $33.2 billion into the state’s aging transportation system, creating jobs, and promoting economic growth. Rebuild Illinois is not only the largest capital program in state history but also the first one that touches all modes of Illinois transportation: roads and bridges, transit, waterways, freight and passenger rail, aviation, and bicycle and pedestrian accommodations.

Accomplishments through year three of Rebuild Illinois include approximately $8.6 billion of improvements statewide on 4,422 miles of highway, 412 bridges and 621 additional safety improvements.