DeKalb city staff is preparing a grant proposal for the Illinois Department of Transportation requesting $4 million to fund the $13 million widening of Peace Road from two lanes into four.

City Council approved the proposal to proceed with the funding of this project during its Committee of the Whole meeting March 28. The widening of Peace Road will be from Interstate 88 to just north of Lincoln Highway, making Peace Road a four-lane highway from Interstate 88 north to Route 64, according to the March 28 City Council agenda.

“In a long term perspective, [the Peace Road widening] is very important to the city … it’s important for safety,” said City Engineer John Laskowski.

The Peace Road widening was deemed necessary by DeKalb city staff after DeKalb Police data showed the Peace Road and Lincoln Highway intersection is one the most accident prone intersections in DeKalb. By expanding the road into four lanes, the traffic will be spread out and decrease the amount of accidents, according to the agenda.

“[Traffic] could get congested on Annie Glidden Road and people reroute to Peace Road as an alternative to avoid the congestion,” Laskowski said.

Laskowski said the city will also be adding rumble strips to the edges of the road in order for the driver to feel when they are getting close to the edge of the road.

The Metropolitan Planning Organization measured the increase in traffic on Peace Road from 2014 to 2015, and it showed an increase from 12 percent to 37 percent in truck driving traffic and an increase from 3 percent to 18 percent in average daily traffic. The increase in traffic is due to an increase in economic development from the Target Distribution Center, 1115 Macom Drive, creating jobs and the expansion of the 3M Distribution Center, 3050 Corporate Drive, according to the agenda.

Once the grant application is submitted, a response from the Illinois Department of Transportation could take anywhere from two weeks to two months, Laskowski said.

DeKalb anticipates the construction will begin in 2019 and go through at least 2025, according to the agenda.