Residents Learn More About Grade Separation Project

Dozens of concerned citizens came to on May 2 to learn more about the proposed grade separation project at Route 14 and the Elgin Joliet & Eastern Railway, or EJ&E.

, the village is planning to build an underpass or overpass for vehicles to travel along to avoid any delays caused by trains blocking the intersection.

Reason for grade separation

The village conducted a railway traffic impact study that found traffic delays in Barrington will double by 2015, when all freight trains are running along the EJ&E.

Engineering consultants discovered that the village is estimated to have 116 to 122 hours of traffic delay daily due to freight trains at the Route 14 crossing in Barrington.

Funding

The village is in the first of three phases of the project. Phase I consists of preliminary engineering and environmental studies. This phase is funded by a federal TIGER II Grant with other costs provided by the Illinois Department of Transportation. Phases II and III are not yet included in IDOT’s fiscal year 2012-17 Proposed Highway Improvement Program.

Public Information Meeting

The first public information meeting on the grade separation project was well-attended on May 2. Dozens of residents came out to learn more about the project and to ask questions of officials.

John and Amy Malecki came to the meeting to get more information.

“We live really close to the tracks, less than 100 feet,” John Malecki said.

“With the traffic, something needs to be done. There have been train stalls where it’s taken me two hours to get home,” Amy Malecki said.

Many Jewel Park neighborhood residents attended the meeting. The neighborhood backs up to the railroad tracks, causing major noise concerns among homeowners.

“The closer you are to the tracks, the greater the impact,” said Mark Eissler of Jewel Park.

Eissler and his neighbors are in favor of a grade separation, but they would like to see engineering go with an underpass instead of an overpass for both aesthetics and noise control.

Get involved with the project

The village is forming a community advisory group composed of 20 to 25 various community representatives like property owners, business owners, and residents living in close proximity to the project location. The community advisory group will meet with the project study group periodically throughout the engineering process to make sure community needs are met.

If you are interested in being a member of the community advisory group, you may learn more information by clicking here. All applications must be submitted by May 11.  

Three more public hearings will be held before the end of Phase I, whose estimated completion is in 2014.

For more information on the grade separation project, visit the project website.