A traffic noise analysis is required for a proposed IDOT project if that project consists of a new highway built on a new location, reconstruction of an existing highway that significantly changes the horizontal or vertical characteristics of the road, or an increase in the number of through traffic lanes or auxiliary lanes. Minor projects, such as normal roadway resurfacings (without adding new lanes), do not require a noise analysis.
Changes in noise levels of 3 decibels or less are barely perceptible. An increase of 5 decibels is generally noticeable, and a 10-decibel increase is usually perceived to be "twice as loud" as before.
Noise impacts are defined as 66 decibels or greater for sensitive land uses such as residences or schools, and 71 decibels or greater for less sensitive land uses such as restaurants and offices. Impacts such as these require mitigation consideration and analysis. A traffic noise increase of greater than 14 dB(A) over existing levels is also considered an impact, even if it is less than the Noise Abatement Criteria threshold for a given use.
A noise wall must provide a decrease of at least 5 decibels at one impact receptor; this reduction is considered readily perceptible by the human ear.
The Noise Abatement Criteria (NAC) identifies the noise level at which noise abatement should be evaluated. It is not a noise abatement or design goal. The objective of noise abatement is to achieve a noise reduction that will result in a noticeable difference from the unabated traffic noise levels and can be implemented in a cost effective way. A reduction of 5 dB(A) is considered to be “readily perceptible” to the human ear.
Existing noise levels along the I-290 corridor range between 57 to 79 decibels and are anticipated to remain within this range according to 2040 projections if the highway is not expanded.
IDOT must implement the following steps to determine if a noise wall will be built:
Identify impacts to outdoor areas of frequent human use with a noise sensitive land use along I-290.
Determine if a noise wall would reduce noise, is constructible, and is cost effective.
Potential noise wall locations are presented to stakeholders who may benefit from the proposed noise wall.
Adjacent property owners and tenants whose buildings are identified as “benefitted receptors” will be able to vote on whether or not they want a noise wall. A majority vote determines if a noise wall will be constructed.
IDOT must implement the following steps to determine if a noise wall will be built:
1) Identify impacts to outdoor areas of frequent human use with a noise sensitive land use along I-290 (see Traffic Noise Analysis Volume I and Volume II).
2) Determine if a noise wall would reduce noise, is constructible, and is cost effective.
3) Potential noise wall locations are presented to stakeholders who may benefit from the proposed noise wall.
4) Adjacent property owners and tenants whose buildings are identified as “benefitted receptors” (those who would benefit from a noise wall) will be able to vote on whether or not they want a noise wall. A majority vote determines if a noise wall will be constructed.
Three noise wall forums were held in October 2015 to present potential noise wall locations to stakeholders. The first round of noise wall voting took place in November and December 2015. For a decision to be made on whether or not a noise wall will be constructed, 33% or more votes must be received from the “benefited receptors” at each potential noise wall location. A second round of voting, which builds upon the first round will begin in January 2015 for those locations that did not receive a 33% response. In addition, ballots will be sent only to those who did not respond during the first round.
Noise level increases due to highway projects are usually due to a combination of increased traffic and changes in the roadway alignment. If traffic doubles, it will generally result in an increase of 3 decibels, which is considered a barely perceptible noise increase.
If the distance between the highway and homes is halved (i.e., from 200 to 100 feet) or doubled, the noise levels generally increase by 3 decibels or decrease by 3 decibels, respectively.
The barriers are typically constructed of precast concrete panels of varying heights depending on the location, and the panels can be customized. The aesthetic design of the I-290 noise walls has not yet been determined. We continue to gather input from community and local agencies regarding aesthetic treatments.
The noise walls recommended for the I-290 project would be constructed in segments throughout the corridor where noise impacts can be effectively reduced. However, these recommendations are subject to approval of benefitted receptors. In addition, existing noise walls in the corridor would remain in place or be reconstructed to the same height.
Not typically. Landscaping typically needs to be up to 200 feet wide, 16-18 feet in height, and with dense undergrowth in order to be effective in reducing noise. In most cases, 200 feet of space between the roadway and receptors is not available; therefore, such a treatment for noise abatement would not be prudent in the I-290 corridor. However, vegetation and trees can potentially help screen the highway traffic from view.
For IDOT and Federal Highway Administration noise policy and procedure, outdoor areas of frequent human activity are given primary consideration. In rare instances where there is no outdoor use area, and only for certain land uses such as schools, hospitals and libraries, interior noise levels may be assessed. IDOT and the Federal Highway Administration do not study interior noise for or provide abatement for private residences.
The I-290 study area extends approximately thirteen miles centered along I-290 from the I-88 and I-290 split on the west to Racine Avenue on the east. This corridor passes through eight communities: Chicago, Bellwood, Broadview, Forest Park, Hillside, Maywood, Oak Park, and Westchester.
The proposed plan for I-290 includes a full reconstruction of approximately 9 miles of pavement and bridges to accommodate an additional lane (4 lanes total in each direction). On the east side, the proposed plan calls for re-striping of approximately 4 miles. A separate study is addressing the replacement of overhead bridges in the re-striping section.
The planning process for I-290 is based upon the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), a federal law that provides a framework for transportation planning. The process has three basic elements: engineering studies, environmental studies, and stakeholder outreach. The major steps in the process include the identification of transportation needs, development and evaluation of alternatives, and selecting a preferred alternative.
The project team has shared and discussed the findings of the technical studies at each major milestone. The overall study process and findings will be summarized in a report called an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS), which is the most rigorous level of analysis for a transportation project. A Draft EIS will be circulated for public comments at the time of the Public Hearing, and after considering the Public Hearing comments, a Final EIS will be developed.
IDOT has prepared a Stakeholder Involvement Plan, or SIP, which summarizes the overall stakeholder involvement process. A central feature of the SIP has been the Corridor Advisory Group (CAG), which is comprised of area communities, transit agencies, regulatory agencies, county officials, planning agencies, and interested groups. The CAG has met over a dozen times thus far, and has helped define the transportation needs, as well as the development and evaluation of alternatives. Public Meetings were hosted in November of 2009, May of 2011, and October 2013. Public Hearings will be held in early 2017. Other major elements outlined in the SIP include newsletters, small group meetings, speakers bureau presentations, and a project website where interested stakeholders can receive project updates or join the mailing list.
The Department identified the transportation needs through a combination of technical studies and stakeholder input. The major findings of the needs analysis include:
Traffic volumes on I-290 currently exceed its ideal design capacity by up to 38%
As much as 87% of the expressway operates in severe congestion for much of the day
Congestion on I-290 is causing expressway traffic to divert onto the local arterials.
Congestion on I-290 results in long travel times, thus reducing accessibility to jobs from and through the study area.
The connections between transit, bike/pedestrian and vehicle modes along the corridor are poor. Narrow sidewalks, difficult street crossings, and buses stopping in traffic hinder the effectiveness of each travel mode.
The Blue Line Forest Park branch operates at 56% capacity.
I-290 averages 2,000 crashes per year, and experiences a higher rate of crashes as compared to the other similar sections of the Chicagoland expressway system.
IDOT has studied transit options in detail, and found that an expansion of existing transit services, including a westward (rail) extension of the CTA Blue Line, would not reduce congestion along the I-290 corridor in any meaningful way (see Section 5.4.1 of the I-290 Alternatives Evaluation Summary). However, IDOT is providing a space for a westward extension initially as a bus service, which could later be converted to a rail service, once land use is more supportive.
IDOT has been coordinating extensively with stakeholders and transit agencies, including CTA, Pace, Metra and RTA, to identify improvements to existing transit facilities. Specifically, IDOT is partnering with the CTA to prepare a Vision Study that will address replacing the existing Blue Line from the Forest Park station to the Canal Street station. For more information, see “What are the findings of the CTA Blue Line Vision Study?”
Improvement suggestions (alternatives) for the I-290 study were gathered through a continuous series of stakeholder meetings, and technical analysis. The project team conducted three rounds of evaluation, and narrowed the number of alternatives from over 600 alternatives prior to round one, to four alternatives to begin round three. Each of the round three alternatives include a range of methods for managing lanes, including vehicle occupancy requirements, tolling, or combinations of both. In addition, all four of the alternatives include new express bus services and can accommodate a future CTA Blue Line extension, as well as bike and pedestrian improvements. The round three alternatives are as follows:
No-Build alternative – The highway would receive no more than general maintenance improvements.
General Purpose Lane - The highway would be expanded to provide four lanes in each direction between Mannheim Road and Austin Boulevard.
High Occupancy Vehicles (2+ passengers) Lane - A new lane for carpool vehicles (High Occupancy Vehicle, "HOV") would be added between Mannheim Road and Austin Boulevard, creating a total of four lanes in each direction. East of Austin Boulevard, the inside lane would be re-striped to be an HOV lane .
High Occupancy Toll (3+ passengers) Lane – A new High Occupancy Toll Lane would be added, creating a total of four lanes in each direction between Mannheim Road and Austin Boulevard. The new lane would be a “HOT” lane, which allows carpoolers (3+ passengers) and transit vehicles to ride for free, while others would pay a toll. It is important to note that the other lanes would remain toll free. East of Austin Boulevard, the existing inside lane would be re-striped to be an HOT lane.
High Occupancy Toll (3+ passengers) & Toll – A new High Occupancy Toll Lane would be added, creating a total of four lanes in each direction between Mannheim Road and Austin Boulevard. The new lane would be a “HOT” lane, which allows carpoolers (3+ passengers) and transit vehicles to ride for free, while others would pay a toll. East of Austin Boulevard, the existing inside lane would be re-striped to be an HOT lane. The other lanes would be converted to tolled lanes.
The study is following the federal National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) process for preparing an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS).
The I-290 Planning process includes a detailed assessment of all environmental impacts required by NEPA, including cultural and biological impacts. Air quality, noise, historic structures, water quality, construction and secondary and cumulative impacts are some of the most relevant environmental factors being examined, although all environmental impacts will be analyzed.
Current environmental study results include the following:
There would be minimal impacts on residential properties due to the project remaining within the right-of-way (ROW) throughout most of the corridor. Some minimal land outside of the ROW would be needed, primarily near 25th and 1st Avenue. IDOT is coordinating with the CTA and the CSX Railroad to determine if there is any excess property available for I-290 improvements
There is no substantial difference in environmental effects when comparing the four round three alternatives under consideration to the No Build alternative.
There is no substantial difference between the Build alternatives and the No Build Alternative in terms of Air Quality effects, with positive trends for the build alternatives with managed lanes. See COSIM Analysis and Air Quality Sensitivity Analysis.
There is no substantive difference in noise impacts between the No Build alternative and the four build alternatives being considered; in addition, there is no substantive difference in noise impacts between the four alternatives being considered. A majority of the locations studied along I-290 already exceed the federal Noise Abatement Criteria threshold for their respective land uses today, and would experience relatively small changes by the year 2040 with either the No Build Alternative or the build alternatives.
There are no impacts to wetlands, wildlife or agricultural resources; a review of potential historic resource effects is ongoing.
Impacts to parks are minimal. There would be a potential acquisition of 0.0405 acres of public park land in Forest Park. At Columbus Park, a new multi-use trail is proposed, which would connect the Prairie Path on the west and Columbus Park on the east, and would provide an enhancement to the park.
A key objective of the I-290 study is to improve all modes of transportation in the corridor, and we have been working with stakeholders to identify a system of bicycle and pedestrian improvements that enhance connections between modes and eliminate gaps in the existing network. The following features are common to each of the alternatives under consideration:
A new multi-use trail that connects the Prairie Path on the west and Columbus Park on the east. Additional study and coordination is needed to identify further connections from Columbus Park to the loop.
Wider sidewalks and/or bike lanes at every cross road.
Additional marked cross walks, safety islands, enhanced pedestrian phasing, bus shelters and pedestrian plazas are proposed at the CTA station locations.
The interchange concepts, while still under development, have incorporated a number of design elements to enhance the safety of the pedestrian environment at an expressway interchange, including adjusted vehicle turning radii at intersection corners, enlarged pedestrian refuge islands, widened sidewalks and plaza areas, and modern signals and crosswalks to minimize vehicle pedestrian conflicts. Also under consideration is an improved streetscape design to enhance the environment on the bridges.
Austin Avenue and Austin Boulevard porposed pedestrian improvements - View PDF
In general, drivers use left lanes for higher speeds and longer distance travel, but left-hand ramps require merging and speed changes in order for drivers to enter and exit the highway. A national study sponsored by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO), in cooperation with the FHWA, found that left side entrance or exit ramps have up to 180% more crashes than right side entrance or exit ramps.
The two highest concentrations of crashes occur in the sections of I-290 near Austin Boulevard and Harlem Avenue, which have left-hand ramps. The graph below shows significantly higher crashes on left-hand ramps compared to right-hand ramps, especially when the highway shifts from four lanes to three lanes. The proposed I-290 improvements include changing the left-hand ramps to right-hand access and eliminating lane drops at 25th Avenue and Austin Boulevard by adding a lane.
The CTA launched a study of the Blue Line Forest Park Branch to look at short- and long-term improvements for this facility and to assist IDOT with input on its proposals relative to the I-290 study. The Blue Line Vision Study concluded that the tracks and stations are nearing the end of their useful life and need to be brought up to 21st century standards in terms of service, mobility, and passenger facilities. The CTA has identified the following overall recommendations associated with a complete reconstruction and modernization for the Forest Park branch:
Maintain existing station entrance locations
Remove stations that were closed in the 1970’s
Improve customer experience at stations
Improve infrastructure and speed
A new Forest Park terminal, yard and shop at Des Plaines Avenue
Maintain existing service (an express track is not needed)
Work with IDOT on corridor improvements
West of Des Plaines Avenue, IDOT has configured the I-290 median to accommodate a future Blue Line extension. This transit reserve area, however, could accommodate express bus and bus rapid transit to provide an interim transit service until a Blue Line extension could be constructed.
The CTA’s Blue Line Vision Study evaluated several service and station alternatives. Stakeholders are welcome to submit comments related to the existing Blue Line and to the potential Blue Line extension.
If you have comments, please write the CTA at: Chicago Transit Authority Attn: Ryan Mouw, Government and Community Relations Officer 567 W Lake Street, Chicago, IL 60661 Or submit your comments by email to blueweststudy@transitchicago.com.
For more information, visit the Vision Study’s website at www.transitchicago.com/blueweststudy.
A preferred alternative is the proposed plan that best accomplishes the goals of the project. Through public input and extensive technical and environmental analyses, four alternatives were identified and are being evaluated. The best performing alternative is the High Occupancy Toll 3+.
Through extensive stakeholder outreach and data collection, the High Occupancy Toll 3+ (HOT 3+) has been selected at the preliminary preferred alternative. The HOT 3+ provides a variety of benefits, including the following:
Improved multimodal access/connectivity – provides a combination of highway, transit, bicycle, and pedestrian travel improvements
Minimal impacts to adjacent properties – the HOT 3+ would be built within the existing right-of-way (the “trench”) and would require no residential land acquisition. Minimal ROW (2.6 acres) will be needed at specific locations near interchanges. In addition, the traffic noise analysis shows that noise would not increase. However, current noise levels on I-290, and projected future noise levels, are high enough to warrant noise abatement. Residents who may benefit from noise walls will have the opportunity to vote on the proposed noise walls (see “What is the process for a noise wall?”).
Reduced local traffic congestion – expanding and improving I-290 will encourage drivers to take the highway instead of local arterial roads for long-distance trips
Reduced travel time – the HOT 3+ would provide travel time savings of up to 56% and the general purpose lanes would provide up to 25% time savings
Increased access to employment – the HOT 3+ would provide improved access to 397,000 additional jobs
Improved safety – new interchange designs at some of the most congested areas will improve traffic flow and provide a safer transition to and from the highway; pedestrian and bicycle improvements include wider sidewalks, enhanced pedestrian crossings and signals, and large pedestrian plaza areas
Improved transit access – opportunities for enhanced transit, including express bus service, and accommodations for future rail or bus rapid transit extensions
Additional travel choices – the HOT 3+ would provide opportunities for carpooling, congestion priced tolling, and express bus service; a new multi-use trail would connect the Prairie Path on the west and Columbus Park on the east offering pedestrian and bicycle travel options
Improved design and aesthetics – design enhancements would offer improved community connections; there would also be opportunities for decorative elements to improve the aesthetics of the highway, bridges and crossroads
Construction staging for I-290 is under development. To facilitate construction and minimize impacts, advance work improvements are being considered, including:
Local crossings of I-290 and bridges would be constructed and improved in advance of mainline construction.
Off-system local arterial roads are being evaluated for improvements prior to any I-290 mainline construction (link to map); these arterial improvements could include pavement resurfacing, traffic signal improvements, and dynamic message signs to provide traveler information during construction.
As part of a separate study, IDOT is evaluating the addition of Express Toll Lanes (ETL) along I-55. To help address construction related mobility issues from a regional perspective, IDOT is looking to implement the I-55 proposed capacity improvements in advance of the I-290 mainline reconstruction, which would provide a regional alternative to I-290.
Currently, no funding has been identified for Phase II (final design) or Phase III (construction), therefore, a construction timeline has not been established. It is important to note that planning is typically conducted in anticipation of future funding, and is a necessary step to identify the vision for any project. As part of the ongoing study, we will explore funding and financing options, which will form the basis for the project Financial Plan. This may include joint funding opportunities with other agencies that could leverage improvements to multiple modes.
As the nation's expressway system has matured, and capacity improvements have become increasingly difficult to implement due to impacts or costs, innovative solutions have been sought to increase the efficiency of the system in a more sustainable manner. Managed lanes have certain restrictions, such as truck only, tolled, car pool or combinations of restrictions that create the ability to manage the usage of that lane. For the I-290 study, the range of managed lane options includes car pool lanes (High Occupancy Vehicle, "HOV"), tolled lanes, or a combination of features (High Occupancy and Tolling, "HOT"). In general, managed lanes offer travel time savings and reliability for travelers, and can serve to greatly improve the efficiency of a travel corridor and at a relatively lower cost. In 1980, there were 125 miles of managed lanes nationally, and today, there are over 4,000 miles, with many more projects planned, which speaks to the success of this transportation option.
