Will Jefferson Street Bridge Reopen In October As Planned?

JOLIET, IL — October marks the 17th straight month that one of Joliet's most traveled bridges, the Jefferson Street Bridge, has remained in shutdown mode. The Illinois Department of Transportation closed the Jefferson Street Bridge at the start of June in 2020.

Then, came the delays, lots of delays.

Last November, the Illinois Department of Transportation officials notified Joliet Patch that the Jefferson Street Bridge, originally expected to reopen in January, was now set to remain closed until the end of April 2021.

IDOT officials said the bridge repairs have fallen behind schedule "due to fabrication of a mechanical component, the main gear shaft, that is needed to move the bridge."

Then in March, IDOT announced the Jefferson Street Bridge would not reopen in April as planned. Instead, the reopening was postponed another seven months, until October.

After hearing the disappointing news, Joliet Mayor Bob O'Dekirk and other city leaders held a news conference to complain about the continued shutdown of the Jefferson Street Bridge and its negative impact on Joliet's downtown economy.

"It's unacceptable that this won't happen," the mayor told Joliet Patch. "It's been going on for a year. I think enough is enough. It seems like it never gets open on time. They're saying it's now not going to be done until October. Last summer, it was supposed to be done in the fall, and then it became April. It's definitely thwarting development downtown."

After receiving pressure from Joliet officials, IDOT agreed to turn the one-way Cass Street Bridge into a two-way thoroughfare effective May 1.

The re-routing of traffic through the Cass Street Bridge has gone smoothly and alleviated some of Joliet's frustration with IDOT over the extraordinary amount of time it has taken to repair the Jefferson Street Bridge.

Now, that October has arrived, Joliet Patch has reached out to IDOT communications officials for an update on the repairs to the Jefferson Street Bridge.

Is the broken Jefferson Street Bridge really going to reopen this month as was promised in March? Or, is it more likely that the Chicago Bears will build their new football stadium in Arlington Heights long before Joliet's Jefferson Street Bridge ever gets fixed?

Stay tuned.