Illinois Route 255

Illinois Route 255 (IL 255), also referred to as the Alton Bypass, is a northwesterly extension of Interstate 255 (I-255) in southwestern Illinois in the St. Louis metropolitan area. IL 255 starts at I-270 in Pontoon Beach and ends at U.S. Route 67 (US 67) in Godfrey, at a total length of approximately 23.3 miles (37.5 km). It was constructed in four segments opening from 1998 to 2012 at a total cost of $165.2 million.

Illinois Route 255
Alton Bypass
IL 255 highlighted in red
Route information
Maintained by IDOT
Length	23.3 mi[1] (37.5 km)
Existed	October 1998[2]–present
Major junctions
South end	I-255 / I-270 in Pontoon Beach
North end	US 67 in Godfrey
Location
Counties	Madison
Highway system
Illinois State Highway System Interstate U.S. State Tollways ← I-255 IL 267 →

Route description

IL 255 is a four-lane, limited-access freeway for its entire length. It serves as an important circumferential artery for the northeastern portion of the St. Louis metropolitan area. The final segment—4.3 miles (6.9 km) from Seminary Road to US 67 in Godfrey, just north of the intersection of US 67 and Montclaire Avenue (IL 267/IL 111)—was opened on November 23, 2012. The highway passes just to the west of the St. Louis Regional Airport and Southern Illinois University Edwardsville.

Although IL 255 was designed to federal Interstate Highway standards, it was built by the Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) using state-provided funds.

History

Described as "the Road to Prosperity" by business leaders and government officials who initially proposed it in the late 1970s, IL 255 was part of a region-wide effort to create a high-speed alternative to US 67 over the Clark Bridge through the city-center of Alton, and to two congested local routes (IL 3 and IL 111) that roughly parallel the IL 255 corridor. Although it was part of the much larger Corridor 413 plan,[3] the local politicians focused mostly on the segment from I-270 to what was then IL 267 north of the Godfrey "Y" intersection. At that time, the Berm Highway, the Beltline extension, and the Madison Avenue connector were not built and both IL 3 and IL 111 were over capacity between Alton and I-270. In 1975, a six-month detour related with the closing of the Old Clark Bridge exposed the need for the Alton Bypass along with the other three routes. However, until 1985, the Alton Bypass was a low priority,[4] as other local road projects in the area were considered more important.

The roadway was constructed in four segments opening from 1998 to 2012 at a total cost of $165.2 million. The first 6.5-mile (10.5 km) segment, from I-270 to IL 143, was completed in October 1998 at the cost of $40 million (excluding land acquisition).[5] The second segment, a 7.2-mile (11.6 km) extension from IL 143 to Fosterburg Road was constructed for $78.1 million and opened on October 20, 2006, approximately one year behind schedule, owing to the 2005 collapse of the Wisconsin-based construction company that held the contracts for that portion of the roadway.[6] The $25.1 million third segment opened on August 22, 2008 and extended the road from Fosterburg Road to Seminary Road.[7] The fourth and final segment opened on November 23, 2012 and extended the road 4.3 miles (6.9 km) from Seminary Road to US 67 in Godfrey, just north of the intersection of US 67 and Montclaire Avenue (IL 267/IL 111) at a cost of $22 million.[8][9]

Exit list

The entire route is in Madison County.

Location	mi[1]	km	Exit	Destinations	Notes
Pontoon Beach	0.00	0.00		I-255 south – Memphis	Continuation beyond I-270
			30	I-270 – Kansas City, Indianapolis	Southern terminus; exit number based on I-255 mileage; I-270 west exit 7B, east exit 7
Edwardsville	1.10	1.77	2	Gateway Commerce Center Drive
	2.98	4.80	3	CR 69 (New Poag Road)	Serves Southern Illinois University Edwardsville
Roxana	5.23	8.42	5	Madison Avenue – South Roxana
	6.50	10.46	6	IL 143 (Edwardsville Road) – Edwardsville, Wood River
Wood River	8.04	12.94	8	IL 111 (Vaughn Road/Bellwood Drive) – Wood River, Bethalto
Bethalto	10.31	16.59	10	IL 111 / IL 140 (MacArthur Drive) – Alton, Bethalto	SPUI interchange
​	13.49	21.71	13	Fosterburg Road
​	16.41	26.41	16	CR 17 (Seminary Road)
Godfrey			19	Humbert Road
			20	IL 111 / IL 267 (Montclaire Avenue) – Godfrey
	23.3	37.5		US 67 north – Jacksonville	Northern terminus; northbound exit and southbound entrance
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi       Incomplete access

Pictures

• 
  Control city from IL 111
• 
  Northbound at IL 111 (exit 8)
• 
  Damaged signs off exit 2, which has since been removed

See also

•  Illinois portal
•  U.S. Roads portal

References

1. Illinois Technology Transfer Center (2006). "T2 GIS Data". Illinois Department of Transportation. Retrieved November 8, 2007.
2. Carlson, Rich. "Routes 203 and up". Illinois Highways Page. Retrieved October 26, 2008.
3. Dees, Dan C. (November 1, 1974). "Federal-Aid Freeway System: Supplemental Freeways" (PDF). Letter to District engineers. Illinois Department of Transportation. Retrieved February 16, 2015 – via MidwestRoads.com.
4. "Alton Interstate Tie-In Revived". Alton Telegraph. February 7, 1985. p. A1.
5. Harvey, Kim (October 14, 1998). "Illinois 255: The Alton Bypass". St. Louis Highway Page. Retrieved June 2, 2006.
6. Schmidt, Sanford J. (October 21, 2006). "New Stretch of Illinois 255 Opens". The Telegraph. Alton, IL. Retrieved October 25, 2008.
7. "Alton Bypass" (PDF) (Press release). Illinois Department of Transportation. August 22, 2008. Archived from the original (PDF) on May 29, 2010. Retrieved October 25, 2008.
8. Leiser, Ken (November 23, 2012). "Final Stretch of Highway 255 Now Open". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Retrieved November 24, 2012.
9. 618-659-2075, TERRY HILLIG • [e-mail] >. "Remaining sections of Illinois 255 freeway expected to open in October". stltoday.com. Retrieved November 26, 2018.CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)