The Illinois Tollway board of directors has authorized three construction and professional engineering services contracts totaling more than US$332.2 million, including contracts for the new I-490 Tollway and the Central Tri-State Tollway rehabilitation (I-294). The Tollway Board has authorized more than US$600 million in contracts for 2021, as part of the tenth year of the Tollway’s 15-year, US$14 billion Move Illinois construction program. Since the Move Illinois Program began in 2012, the Illinois Tollway has spent more than US$9.2 billion, with more than US$2.4 billion of that amount committed to small, diverse, and veteran-owned businesses. Furthermore, as of September, the capital program has produced or maintained an estimated 100,000 total employment.
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The contracts accepted include 27 disadvantaged, minority, and women-owned business enterprise (D/M/WBE) subcontractors and consultants, as well as three veteran-owned subcontractors and consultants. Contract obligations for D/M/WBE participation range from 18.3 percent to 47.5 percent, while commitments for veteran involvement range from 0.50 percent to 3 percent. The contracts are as follows: a US$214.8 million contract to Walsh Construction Company II for earthwork and construction of a new Union Pacific Railroad bridge over the Canadian Pacific Railway Bensenville Yard as part of the I-490 Tollway Project, a US$4.1 million contract to Walsh Construction Company II for removal of the Hinsdale Oasis pavilion and bridge as part of the Central Tri-State Tollway (I-294) Project, and a US$113.3 million contract to WSP USA Inc.
Illinois Tollway significant construction projects
“The Illinois Tollway is in the midst of two of the most significant construction projects in the agency’s history, and collaborating with our board of directors to approve the proper contracts at the right time is critical to our success. Building a new railroad bridge to carry Union Pacific Railroad trains over the Canadian Pacific Railway’s Bensenville Yard and removing the Hinsdale Oasis are critical projects that must be completed before we can deliver the new I-490 Tollway and reconstruct the Central Tri-State Tollway “said José Alvarez, executive director of the Illinois Tollway.
