2003-04•
RESOLUTION NO. 2003- 4
A RESOLUTION ENCOURAGING CONGRESS TO PROVIDE TEA -3
FUNDING FOR IMPROVEMENTS TO ILLINOIS ROUTE 120 IN LAKE COUNTY
WHEREAS, Congress currently is in the process of assessing federal transportation
funding priorities and planning appropriations for the next several years;
WHEREAS, the State of Illinois, and Lake County, in particular, has contributed
substantially more in taxes for road construction than it has received in transportation
funding;
WHEREAS, the Administrator of the Federal Highway Administration has
acknowledged that increased traffic congestion is a growing threat to both the nation's
economy and its quality of life;
WHEREAS, the 2002 Urban Mobility Report from the Texas Transportation Institute
ranks the Chicago area as third worst in the nation in congestion conditions, third worst in
annual hours of congestion delay, third worst in wasted fuel consumption due to
congestion and third worst in annual costs caused by congestion conditions;
WHEREAS, Lake County, Illinois, faces a growing traffic congestion crisis, with
existing, critical congestion levels on the area's major roadways expected to double by
2020;
WHEREAS, McHenry County also is experiencing a substantial increase in traffic
congestion on its area roadways;
WHEREAS, traffic congestion and bottlenecks damage air quality, impede
commerce, increase energy consumption, diminish the natural and human environment,
and threaten quality of life in Cook, Lake and McHenry Counties;
WHEREAS, congestion conditions cost the Chicago metropolitan region an
estimated $4.1 billion each year;
WHEREAS, strategic expansion of transportation system capacity is essential to
preserve the environment, promote economic vitality and to improve the efficiency, safety,
and security of roads and highways;
WHEREAS, additional roadway capacity and new roads are essential components
of any realistic plan to improve congestion conditions, reduce congestion levels, and
reduce congestion delays;
WHEREAS, Illinois Route 120 connects the City of McHenry to the Waukegan
lakefront, serves as a strategic arterial roadway carrying large volumes of east -west traffic
in northern Lake County and suffers from severe traffic congestion;
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WHEREAS, the Illinois Department of Transportation and the Illinois State Toll
Highway Authority have extensively examined Lake County's transportation needs as well
as a wide range of improvement options. This joint effort, known as the Lake County
Transportation Project, identified the need for many different type of improvements,
including community bypasses. One such community bypass is along the Illinois Route
120 corridor, and extends from the Village of Volo to the City of Waukegan, a total distance
of approximately 13 miles. The bypass would include upgrades to existing Illinois Route
120 and approximately 8 miles of new 4 to 6 lane roadway on new location. Grade
separated interchanges would be implemented at major crossing routes;
WHEREAS, an increase in roadway capacity on Illinois Route 120 would provide a
significant improvement in regional traffic congestion conditions and significantly reduce
congestion delays;
WHEREAS, the Village of Buffalo Grove believes that regional governments, local
communities, chambers of commerce, business organizations, regional associations, and
other interested parties must continue to work cooperatively to promote a comprehensive,
multifaceted approach to improving the region's transportation system, including adding
new roads, expanding roadway capacity, increasing public transit options and improving
operational efficiencies of existing roads.
NOW THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE PRESIDENT AND BOARD OF
TRUSTEES OF THE VILLAGE OF BUFFALO GROVE, COOK AND LAKE COUNTIES,
ILLINOIS, that our representatives in the Unites States Congress are hereby urged to
make an increase in roadway capacity, along with other improvements planned for the
Illinois Route 120 corridor, a federal transportation priority and to secure federal
appropriations for those improvements at the earliest possible date.
AYES: h - Braiman, Glover, Beman, Johnson, Kahn, Trilling
NAYES: 0 - None
ABSENT: 0 - None
PASSED: January 20, 2003 APPROVED: January 20, 2003
Village President
Villa lerk