Illinois Route 59
Illinois Route 59 is a north–south state highway in northeastern Illinois. It runs south from Illinois Route 173 in Antioch to I-55 in Shorewood, spanning the north–south width of Chicago's western suburbs. This is a distance of 71.13 miles (114.47 km).[1]
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| Sutton Road Kerry Sheridan Memorial Highway Neltnor Boulevard | ||||
| Route information | ||||
| Maintained by IDOT | ||||
| Length | 71.13 mi[1] (114.47 km) | |||
| Existed | 1924[2]–present | |||
| Major junctions | ||||
| South end |  | |||
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| North end |  | |||
| Location | ||||
| Counties | Will, DuPage, Cook, Lake | |||
| Highway system | ||||
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Route description
Illinois 59 is a major four-lane arterial for most of its length, running parallel to and about five miles (8 km) east of the Fox River in Illinois. It is especially congested in the suburbs of Aurora and Naperville, where traffic counts average 40,000-55,000 vehicles per day. To accommodate the congestion, the 7.5-mile stretch between Ferry Road and 95th Street has been widened to six lanes. In the corridor from Shorewood to Plainfield and in the corridor from Warrenville to Hoffman Estates, the road is also fairly congested, with traffic counts averaging 25,000-40,000 vehicles per day; these portions are four lanes wide. Most portions along Illinois 59 are zoned for commercial uses, however there are extensive stretches of residential areas along the road in West Chicago, Barrington, and Fox Lake Hills. Illinois 59 is the only numbered highway with a Metra station named after it: the Route 59 station on the BNSF line, which differentiates the station from the Naperville and Aurora stations.[3]
Illinois 59 is called Fox Lake Road in Fox Lake Hills, Grand Avenue in portions of Ingleside and eastern Fox Lake, Sutton Road from South Barrington to Bartlett, Neltnor Boulevard in West Chicago, Hough Street in Barrington, and Brook Forest Avenue and Cottage Street in Shorewood.
Illinois 59 overlaps U.S. Route 12 (Rand Road) between Wauconda and Fox Lake.
In almost every town or village spanning Route 59, retail development and residential sprawl can be found. The Route 59 corridor includes regional shopping areas in the Naperville/Aurora area, the Hoffman Estates/South Barrington/Streamwood area, the Plainfield area, and the Joliet/Shorewood area. The Route 59 corridor also includes large community retail areas in Volo/Fox Lake, Wauconda, Bartlett, West Chicago, and Warrenville. Route 59 also travels through the Barrington Historic District and is proximate to significant office complexes and job centers at its junctions with Interstate 90 and Interstate 88; these intersecting corridors of commerce are known as the Golden Corridor and the Illinois Technology and Research Corridor respectively. The regional shopping malls Westfield Fox Valley in Aurora and The Arboretum of South Barrington can also be found along the Route 59 corridor.
History
SBI Route 59 ran from Joliet to Antioch on the current Illinois 59. Illinois 59 was replaced by U.S. Route 66 as U.S. 66 made its way onto a new highway in 1940; by 1957, Illinois 59 had been returned to its original state.[2]
The Illinois Department of Transportation opened a diverging diamond interchange at Illinois 59 and Interstate 88 in September 2015.[4]
Major intersections
| County | Location | mi[5] | km | Destinations | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Will | Shorewood | 0.0 | 0.0 | | Southern terminus of IL 59; southbound exit and northbound entrance; I-55 exit 251 |
| Southern end of Kerry Sheridan Memorial Highway | |||||
| 1.5 | 2.4 | | |||
| Northern end of Kerry Sheridan Memorial Highway | |||||
| Plainfield | 7.2 | 11.6 |  | Southern end of US 30/Lincoln Highway concurrency | |
| 7.4 | 11.9 | | Northern end of Lincoln Highway concurrency | ||
| 7.8 | 12.6 | | |||
| 8.5 | 13.7 | | Northern end of US 30 concurrency | ||
| DuPage | Aurora–Naperville city line | 17.5 | 28.2 | | |
| Naperville | 21.0 | 33.8 | | Diverging diamond interchange; I-88 exit 123 | |
| Warrenville | 22.2 | 35.7 |  | ||
| West Chicago | 25.2 | 40.6 |  | Interchange | |
| 29.2 | 47.0 |  | Red light camera enforcement intersection (southbound only) | ||
| Cook | Bartlett | 35.7 | 57.5 | | Interchange |
| Streamwood | 36.5 | 58.7 |  | ||
| Hoffman Estates | 38.4 | 61.8 |  | ||
| 39.9 | 64.2 | | I-90 exit 59 | ||
| Hoffman Estates–South Barrington village line | 40.4 | 65.0 |  | ||
| Barrington Hills | 43.3 | 69.7 |   | Southern end of IL 68 concurrency | |
| 44.7 | 71.9 | | Northern end of IL 68 concurrency | ||
| Lake | Barrington | 47.5 | 76.4 | | |
| North Barrington | 49.5 | 79.7 |  | ||
| Lake Barrington | 50.7 | 81.6 |  | ||
| Tower Lakes | 52.5 | 84.5 |  | ||
| Wauconda | 54.1 | 87.1 | | Southern end of US 12 concurrency; interchange | |
| 55.1 | 88.7 |  | Interchange | ||
| Volo | 59.7 | 96.1 |  | ||
| Fox Lake | 62.9 | 101.2 |   | Western terminus of IL 134; eastern terminus of CR A26 | |
| 63.4 | 102.0 | | Northern end of US 12 concurrency; interchange | ||
| Fox Lake Hills–Lake Villa village line | 67.6 | 108.8 |  | Western terminus of IL 132 | |
| Antioch | 71.13 | 114.47 | | Northern terminus of IL 59 | |
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi
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External links
References
- Illinois Technology Transfer Center (2006). "T2 GIS Data". Retrieved 2007-11-08.
- Carlson, Rick. Illinois State Highways Page: Routes 41 through 60. Last updated March 15, 2006. Retrieved March 23, 2006.
- Metra. Metra Home Page. Retrieved May 2, 2006.
- "DIVERGING DIAMOND INTERCHANGE OPENS AT ROUTE 59, I-88 IN NAPERVILLE". Retrieved 12 April 2016.
- Google (February 19, 2017). "Overview Map of IL 59" (Map). Google Maps. Google. Retrieved February 19, 2017.