Dundee Road To Close For 6 Months During Construction

NORTHBROOK, IL — A $6.5 million bridge replacement project is expected to close Dundee Road to through traffic for six months. The bridge over the North Branch of the Chicago River at Lee Road needs to be removed and replaced, according to state and village officials.

Construction is anticipated to begin in April and be complete by the end of October.

The Illinois Department of Transportation opens bidding on the project Jan. 19, according to Northbrook Village Engineer Matt Farmer. IDOT will have about 60 days to award the contract.

Built in 1938, the bridge has outlived its usefulness. According to IDOT spokesperson Guy Tridgell, the bridge is currently listed as "functionally obsolete and structurally deficient," and large commercial vehicles have already been banned on the span.

The bridge will be replaced, and its existing sideway will be replaced with a larger, multi-use path that will accommodate both bicycles and pedestrians, he said.

While local traffic will be able to still access Dundee Road from both sides of the bridge, motorists heading through will be detoured north to Lake Cook Road past Northbrook Court. Eastbound drivers will be directed up Waukegan Road and westbound drivers will be sent up Skokie Boulevard, according to planning documents.

The overall cost of the project is $6.5 million, according to Tridgell. Northbrook will cover $1.6 million of the project to pay for a repairs to a water main and a sanitary sewer line in the bridge area.

The Northbrook Chamber of Commerce said it will be working with businesses impacted by the detour.

"We'll be doing the best we can, as far ahead of time and in advance, to make sure that we can inform the businesses about what we find out about the project and we'll be working really hard to keep them updated," said Communications Manager Jean Streeter.

_{Top photo: Dundee and Lee roads | Google Street View}