Drivers have had to be patient navigating construction congestion on the south side of Yorkville, while the Illinois Department of Transportation widens Illinois Route 71.

The area is also undergoing a significant Illinois Route 47 expansion that should alleviate rush hour traffic.

To continue a leg of the roadwork south along Route 47 from Canton Farm Road to Route 71, the city of Yorkville will relocate underground utilities out of the proposed roadway area.

The city is digging up and relocating a water main that stretches along Route 47 from the Windett Ridge subdivision out to the intersection of Route 71 and Route 47.

While IDOT is responsible for a large portion of the project, the city is responsible for covering the costs of the utilities relocation.

The City Council approved a proposal of $151,713, with an additional $56,500 in direct expenses, with Engineering Enterprises Inc. to perform all field work, complete the plans, permit the plans and bid the project.

Overall, IDOT’s multi-year plan allocates $43.5 million for the reconstruction – with additional traffic lanes – of a 4.2-mile section of Route 47 from Route 71 to Canton Farm Road.

IDOT is widening Route 71 from a two-lane to a four-lane highway with a raised median from Illinois Route 126 to Orchard Road in Oswego.

This project is projected to be completed by the end of this year.

Route 47 construction

Further north, IDOT is undergoing a massive expansion of the Route 47 corridor from Kennedy Road in Yorkville out to Sugar Grove’s Cross Street.

IDOT is involved in all parts of the project, including widening the intersections at Route 47 and Galena Road. Once completed, Route 47 will be widened and expanded, and will feature pathways and bridges more accessible to pedestrians.

IDOT has slated $67.2 million for the 4.3-mile section for Route 47 extending from Galena Road in Yorkville to Cross Street in Sugar Grove. IDOT is spending $57.5 million more on the 2.3-mile section from Route 47 from Galena Road to Kennedy Road in Yorkville.

The city is relocating underground utilities in their portions of the roadways slated for construction.

The construction is expected to take at least two years to complete.

All of the projects are part of a larger design plan to improve traffic congestion in the region, which has seen population growth far outpace the roadway infrastructure, causing traffic headaches.

Yorkville Public Works Director Eric Dhuse previously said the construction will cause temporary traffic congestion, but will be well worth it in the long-run.

He said drivers will see a huge improvement on traffic flows, hopefully alleviating the half-mile backups during rush hour along Route 47.