HISTORY OF THE PROJECT
This project began in 1969, with the passage of state legislation for major highway improvements statewide, including a supplemental freeway, FA 407, from Peoria to Quincy. A corridor study was completed in 1970 and included that portion of the supplemental freeway area from Peoria to IL 61 near the town of Tennessee in McDonough County. Three corridors, A, B, and C, were evaluated, and Corridor A was selected. A draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the portion of Corridor A from Peoria to Canton was begun in the mid-1970s, but the study was suspended in 1979. The FA 407 corridor was also included in three feasibility studies for a highway between Chicago and Kansas City, in 1968, 1974, and 1990. All three studies concluded that the highway could be feasible. In 1998, the 336 Coalition, a group of concerned citizens, business people, and local government representatives, was formed to promote the study and construction of a four-lane highway from Peoria to Macomb. The three corridors from the 1970s study, with a new terminus at Macomb, are re-evaluated in this study.
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PURPOSE OF THE PROJECT
If constructed, the project will provide a modern transportation facility from Peoria to Macomb, which will be the final link in a highway system providing western Illinois and its communities greater access to each other and to the regional interstate highway and expressway systems. Other related approved projects in various stages from design to completion are as follows:
• US 67 from Macomb to Monmouth
• US 67 from Macomb to Alton
• IL 336 from Quincy to Macomb
In addition, the Macomb bypass, a freeway study completed in June 2004, would connect all these routes, including IL 336 from Peoria to Macomb. This current IL 336 project is a regional link that will serve present and future travel needs and complete the highway network. The current project will also help provide economic stability to this area, which is in economic decline due to loss of mining and manufacturing jobs, and will provide improved travel efficiency and safety.
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NEED FOR ACTION
This project is based on the need for improvement of system linkage, economic stability, and travel efficiency.
The proposed project will improve regional transportation continuity and enhance the linkage of west-central Illinois to major economic markets. This project, while having independent utility, is a key link to the following four-lane highway improvements in west-central Illinois that are either existing, under construction, or proposed.
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CORRIDOR STUDY
The corridor study was a re-evaluation of a corridor study for a modern transportation facility in west-central Illinois. The study area covered portions of Peoria, Fulton, and McDonough Counties and extends from I 474 westward to either US 67 near Macomb or the proposed Macomb bypass, a distance of about 60 miles. On the south, the study area is bounded by the Illinois River from Peoria to about the intersection of US 24 and 136; from there, it extends due west. The northern study boundary includes IL 116, IL 78, and IL 9. The study area is primarily rural agricultural. The cities near the termini, Macomb (population 18,558) and Peoria (population 112,936), are the economic and population centers for McDonough and Peoria Counties. Canton (population 15,288), near the middle of the project area, is the economic and population center for Fulton County.
The corridor study was completed and approved in June 2004. Alignments will be developed and studied within this corridor.
Actual Corridor Report
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ALIGNMENTS, DESIGN REPORT AND ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATEMENT
Alignments are being developed, evaluated and refined within the project corridor. Some alignments will be eliminated and others will be retained for further development. The decisions to eliminate some and retain others for further study and evaluation will be made based on public comments, costs, impacts, engineering considerations and other factors. Public meetings are scheduled to see input and comment and to announce decisions regarding alignments.
As the project proceeds, there will be at least one alternative alignment considered for construction. The consequences and impacts of the “no-build” option will be compared to the consequences and impacts of the “build” options. When a preferred alignment is identified, detailed engineering studies will be done to identify and evaluate details regarding the design of the highway. These studies will be documented in the design report. As the detailed engineering analysis proceeds, the environmental evaluation of the options also proceeds. The engineering analysis and environmental evaluation interact to create a proposed project that meets the purpose and need for the project and minimizes the impacts of the project. A project Environmental Impact Statement will document the impacts.
The public will be given an opportunity to review and comment on the Draft Environmental Impact Statement at a Public Hearing. After the Hearing comment period, comments will be reviewed and evaluated. A Final Environmental Impact Statement will be prepared and presented in a final Public Hearing.
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DESIGN, LAND ACQUISITION AND CONSTRUCTION
After a Record of Decision is made by the Federal Highway Administration on the Final Environmental Impact Statement, design, land acquisition and construction can proceed. The project is not currently funded past the study stage. After study is complete and approved, funding will be sought to continue completion of the project. Normally with a project this large and expensive, sections of the project are designed and constructed over the course of several years. Decisions regarding which sections to build and when to build them are based on funding availability, traffic needs, high accident locations and other factors.
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