I-80 weekend work in Joliet done

Motorists won’t have to deal with weekend lane closures on Interstate 80 in Joliet for the immediate future.

The Joliet project has been completed two weekends ahead of schedule, the Illinois Department of Transportation announced on Monday.

IDOT attributed the early completion to favorable weather and the lack of any emergency road repairs required during the course of the project.

The project has slowed down traffic to a crawl at times, especially on Fridays when it could take two hours to get through Joliet.

“We would like to thank the public for their patience and cooperation over these past extended weekends,” said Illinois Transportation Secretary Omer Osman said in a news release while noting there is more work ahead.

“We’re asking for your continued patience as we rebuild this vital corridor, improving safety, mobility and creating economic opportunity,” Osman said. “Please remain vigilant for work zones at all times, slowing down and giving the road your undivided attention.”

I-80 upgrades, which will include new bridges over the Des Plaines River, will continue into 2028.

IDOT is in the early stages of a 16-mile project that will rebuild interchanges and bridges while adding auxiliary lanes at selected locations between Ridge Road in Minooka and Route 30 in New Lenox.

Road crews for the last six weekends have been patching decks and repairing the road between Raynor Avenue and Gardner Street in Joliet.

IDOT limited the work to one direction per weekend, so when eastbound lanes were shut down the westbound lanes stayed open and vice versa. But the work restricted traffic to one lane, leading to six-mile backups.

The work included patching, milling, resurfacing and pavement striping “to prevent emergency closures and to keep the pavement in acceptable condition until the larger corridor project can begin,” IDOT said in the news release.

.Advance work on I-80 project started last year with a $41.7 million project to replace eastbound bridges over Hickory Creek, Richards Street and Rowell Avenue/Canadian National Railroad. Westbound bridges are being replaced over Richards Street in Joliet and in Rockdale and New Lenox.

Eastbound I-80 is being widened from Gardner Street to Rowell Avenue in Joliet. Once that is done, IDOT will make similar improvements in westbound lanes.