The about 3-mile stretch of Kinzie Avenue, the road that largely dissects Bradley into its eastern and western halves, no longer exists.

The Bradley administration was not about to grind up this key ingredient to the region’s transportation system.

Rather, the street, which is actually Illinois Route 50, gained a new name. The street was renamed Bradley Boulevard.

At an October 2023 Bradley Village Board meeting, trustees approved an ordinance officially renaming the road — the portion that travels through Bradley’s village limits — to Bradley Boulevard.

The change was run past the Illinois Department of Transportation, and the organization had no issue with the move.

Why change the name, Mayor Mike Watson was asked after the meeting?

“We want to make the street more local,” he said.