July 05, 2025
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Navigating Veterans Memorial Bridge in Ottawa construction with a zipper merge

IDOT recommends technique as a way to keep traffic flowing

By Michael Urbanec

A graphic created by IDOT to demonstrate how a zipper merge works. (Photo provided with permission from IDOT)

Crossing the Illinois River in Ottawa has become a challenge for drivers now Veterans Memorial Bridge is limited to one lane each direction, but it can be made simpler with the usage of a technique called the zipper merge.

The Illinois Department of Transportation created a graphic demonstrating how a zipper merge works in 2020 in response to traffic backups in New Lenox, and it applies here: In cases where there are lane reductions and traffic is not heavily congested, merging early into the open lane is the right thing to do. However, heavy traffic situations are the ones where drivers are losing the most time.

Traffic was stalled at Veterans Memorial Bridge in Ottawa during the evening commute Friday, June 24, 2022.

Additionally, a $26 million project is slated 2025-2029 to replace the Route 23 bridge in Ottawa over the Illinois River. Land acquisition, utility adjustments and construction engineering are among the items listed in the cost. The project was approved with Illinois Special Bridge Program funding. (Derek Barichello - dbarichello@shawmedia.com)

The IDOT solution to is the zipper merge, or using both lanes to navigate heavy congestion. It requires drivers to take turns merging into one lane. The driver at the front of the line moves forward and the driver behind them lets the driver to their left, in the case of Veteran’s Memorial Bridge, merge into the usable lane while keeping traffic flowing.

This is all meant to happen while traffic still is moving: Any driver coming to a full stop to let someone merge is doing it incorrectly, according to these instructions.

The zipper merge is just one way drivers can make getting through construction less of a headache: They should also pay close attention to the road’s conditions and all the signs placed along the roads, obey the work zone speed limits and avoid using mobile devices. Drivers should also watch out for workers and equipment. The bridge also has traffic lights at each end that stop the flow of traffic.

IDOT said paying attention to the signs are of the utmost importance, as the signs change based on traffic conditions.

The $2.6 million project started on June 14 and should be completed by the fall. By the end of the project, the bridge will have had its expansion joints replaced and deck slab patched along with many other repairs.

This project is part of IDOT’s plan to improve more than 3,535 miles of roadway and 9 million square feet of bridge as part of the Rebuild Illinois capital program that has a total of $33.2 billion in improvements to all modes of transportation.