Joliet’s Cass Street bridge goes down to one lane beginning Monday

Change was made following inspection and will last for several months

Traffic moves along the Cass Street draw bridge. Friday, Mar. 4, 2022, in Joliet. — The Cass Street bridge in Joliet seen in March when the three-lane route was reduced to two lanes. (Gary Middendorf - gmiddendorf@shawmedia.com/Gary Middendorf)

August 11, 2024 at 6:00 pm CDT

The Cass Street bridge in downtown Joliet will be reduced to one lane for months starting Monday.

The Illinois Department of Transportation on Thursday announced that the bridge will be reduced from three lanes to one indefinitely after an inspection found corroded steel.

The lane reduction will continue into 2025 when a rehabilitation project for the bridge is planned, IDOT spokeswoman Maria Castaneda said. A timetable for that project has not yet been set, she said.

The one-way bridge over the Des Plaines River also is the route for westbound U.S. 30 traffic through downtown.

“The lane closures are due to corrosion of the structural steel on portions of the bridge, discovered during a recent evaluation,” according to news release from IDOT. “The current posted weight restrictions on the bridge will remain in place.”