Almost done: Utica roundabout to be ready by Memorial Day

The orange pylons and construction barrels come down this week, along with the temporary signage. By Memorial Day, the Utica roundabout will be fully functional.

Nate Sell, construction engineer for the Illinois Department of Transportation, confirmed Wednesday the agency and its contractors have met their fingers-crossed goal of completing the traffic circle at U.S. 6 and Route 178 by the unofficial start of summer.

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Crews pour concrete on the northern approach to the roundabout on Tuesday, May 16, 2023 at the intersection of Illinois Route 178 and U.S. Route 6 in Utica. (Scott Anderson)

Sell said we can all thank Mother Nature for helping workers meet the goal.

“We were always hoping for Memorial Day but it depended on the spring weather,” Sell said, acknowledging dry conditions spurred the project along. “The weather cooperated with us.”

Motorists are advised to remain vigilant during the closing days of the project – there still is striping to be done – and to watch for landscaping work to begin after the holiday.

While the project had fallen behind schedule last year, thanks to labor strife and materials shortages, finishing the project in time for summer is ideal because the traffic circle will soon get a workout.

“The weather cooperated with us.”

—  Nate Sell, construction engineer, IDOT

While May and June aren’t the busiest months at Starved Rock State Park – that’s July, with an average 330,000 visitors – attendance surges from 166,000 in April to more than 274,000 by the end of June. Utica Mayor David Stewart is happy, and more than a little relieved, to see the orange cones removed.

“We are entering our busy season, and the roundabout does seem to be running efficiently,” Stewart said, renewing his thanks to IDOT and the contractors “for completing this project smoothly.”

One final order of business will be tabulating the cost. The project was listed at $2.4 million but IDOT, throughout the process, cautioned the final total wouldn’t be known until construction was finished. Wednesday, however, Sell said he was confident any delays or cost overruns wouldn’t push the bottom line much above that figure.