The Illinois Department of Transportation continues to study a possible north-south multi-lane transportation link between Interstates 80 and 88.

Rick Powell, IDOT District 3 project manager, said the department started a four- to six-year research project in January 2003 focusing on traffic between I-80 and I-88.

The department is quantifying the traffic problem and identifying potential solutions, Powell said.

IDOT is considering widening existing two-lane roads or adding a corridor through Grundy, Kendall and Kane counties, Powell said. A corridor would be funded federally and could cost several hundred million dollars, he said.

Since the mid-’90s, a lack of high-capacity north-south roads has contributed to congestion on roads like Route 47, Powell said. Communities like Yorkville see 20- to 30-car backups at lights on two-lane roads, he said.

NIU’s Center for Governmental Studies has contributed research on land use around the proposed road.

John Lewis, assistant vice president of research at the center, said the center recommended a planning council to decide how 1.5 miles of land on either side of the road could be used for maximum benefit.

“Historically, when roads are built there is no study on how to use the land around it,” he said.

The 18-month study began in spring 2002 and concluded in summer 2003. The center submitted its findings to IDOT in December 2003.

Craig Gilbertson, of the Illinois state chapter of the Sierra Club and an assistant in NIU’s law library, said he questions IDOT’s research into the need for the “Prairie Parkway.”

“Some of their projections you have to take with a grain of salt,” Gilbertson said.

Gilbertson said he thinks a north-south connection won’t help because more traffic moves east to west and is handled by I-88. Moreover, the road may be harmful, he said.

“The biggest problem is that they are sprawl magnets. They tend to suck development into an area,” Gilbertson said.

Gilbertson said he believes open space contributes to overall quality of life. Furthermore, the corridor’s proposed area includes excellent farmland that cannot be utilized if it is paved.

The idea of north-south highways connecting east-west highways is almost 100 years old.

Paul Rasmussen, DeKalb community development director, said the idea of connecting east-west transportation routes dates to 1909 with architect and city planner Daniel Burnham, who gained fame as chief of construction of Chicago’s “White City” for the 1893 World’s Columbian Expedition.

Rasmussen said it is projected that over the next 20 years the Chicago area will gain a million people, with only 150,000 settling in the city. Most of the people will reside in the suburban fringe.

“The growth isn’t going to go away,” Rasmussen said.

However, he said, plans for a new roadway should consider other modes of transportation including light rail and buses.