In Wake of Fatal I-55 Crashes, Joliet Official Calls for Truck Bridge

Joliet City Councilman Bob O’Dekirk. Credit: Submitted photo

After yet another semitrailer accident on I-55 Monday afternoon, Joliet District 2 City Councilman Bob O’Dekirk said he is calling for an expedited plan to build a proposed truck bypass bridge from CenterPoint to I-80 at Houbolt Road.

O’Dekirk — a lawyer and former police officer who last winter announced his intention to challenge Mayor Tom Giarrante in the April 2015 election — issued a press release saying recent fatalities on I-55 are ”a call to action.”

On July 21, five people were killed in two separate crashes on I-55. Three women and a young girl were killed when a speeding semi-tractor truck pushed three cars into another truck as they entered a construction zone near Elwood. A fifth victim of that crash died Wednesday.

“The horrific traffic accident on I-55 last week is a call to action” O’Dekirk said. “These types of accidents and numerous rollovers on both I-55 and I-80 won’t stop until we solve the truck congestion problem plaguing Joliet and the surrounding area.”

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O’Dekirk went on to say he wants to see a proposed project move forward that has private financing and will not cost the city money.

The city councilman said he was contacted last fall by union officials who shared a preliminary plan for a truck toll bridge from the CenterPoint Intermodal facility to the interstate. O’Dekirk said the plan also includes proposed private sources of funding for the project. A toll would be paid by trucks, while non-commercial traffic could access the bridge for free, O’Dekirk said in a press release.

Ultimately, Joliet would take ownership of the toll bridge and all revenues would go to city coffers, according to O‘Dekirk.

“While this plan has languished, the area around CenterPoint Intermodal has continued to be plagued by numerous traffic accidents involving trucks accessing the facility causing numerous fatalities,” O’Dekirk said, “and I’m willing to lead the way in forging a partnership with this private group to get it done and get it done now.”

The driver of the semi involved in the July 21 crash faces charges of reckless homicide in a construction zone, falsifying his log book, traffic violations and failure to reduce speed to avoid an accident. A day after the crash, a judge set bail for Indiana resident Francisco Espinal-Quiroz at $1 million.

Also read: 14-Year-Old Girl Dies in I-55 Motorcycle Crash