Illinois Tollway Veterans Memorial Tollway (I-355) Road and Bridge Rehabilitation

JWI provided Phase III construction engineering and management services for the 17.5-mile road and bridge rehabilitation project. JWI also performed as Senior Electrical Engineer. Our team was responsible for construction management and technical support of the roadway lighting and intelligent transportation system (ITS) portions of the road and bridge rehabilitation project on the Veterans Memorial Tollway (I-355) from Butterfield Road to Army Trail Road. The project included the replacement of previous standard high-pressure sodium luminaires with light-emitting diode (LED) technology and the replacement of various ITS elements through the corridor.

Upon the demolition of sodium-vapor roadway lighting on both shoulders of the highway, the LED street lamps were installed in the center median. This not only increased the light coverage of the roadway, but it also increased energy savings. The also project included PCC patching the existing pavement, an HMA overlay on the shoulders, as well as, joint replacement and deck repairs on 10 bridges. Also included was the replacement of the concrete gutter along the outside shoulder to accommodate the overlay, the vertical extension of the median barrier wall, replacement of all guardrails, signage, and pavement markings. Adding to the complexity of the project, an adjacent Tollway project to the south and an adjacent IDOT project to the north were constructed concurrently.

As the three projects were contiguous and no common stage change milestones existed, constant communication and coordination between the projects and stakeholders was essential to assure traffic continuity between the work zones. The JWI team was responsible for on-site inspection, contract document review, design change reviews, record preparation, documentation, maintenance pay estimate submittals, and change orders.