More than $6.1 billion invested since start of Move Illinois Program
Downers Grove, IL, October 25, 2018 — The Illinois Tollway Board of Directors today approved two construction contracts and one professional engineering services contract totaling more than $42 million at its October meeting.
Nearly $555.2 million in construction contracts have been approved by the Tollway Board in 2018, as part of the seventh year of the Tollway’s 15-year, $14 billion capital program, Move Illinois: The Illinois Tollway Driving the Future.
To date, more than $6.1 billion has been invested by the Illinois Tollway since the Move Illinois Program began in 2012, with nearly $1.8 billion of that total committed to small, diverse and veteran-owned firms. In addition, the capital program has created or sustained an estimated 63,820 total jobs as of September 2018.
October awards include a contract that will begin construction of the I-490 Interchange Project that will connect the Illinois Route 390 Tollway to the new I-490 Tollway and create direct access to and from Chicago O’Hare International Airport.
The $340 million project includes construction of three miles of I-490 Tollway mainline along with 16 ramps and 15 bridges to deliver full mobility on the west side of the airport. The new I-490/IL 390 Interchange, which includes providing access to O’Hare Airport to and from the west, is scheduled to be complete by mid-2023. Additional ramps connecting the new I-490 Tollway to O’Hare Airport are scheduled be complete by 2025.
October contracts awarded include:
- A $38.3 million construction contract to Judlau Contracting Inc., College Point, NY, for roadway and bridge construction on Illinois Route 390 between Illinois Route 83 and York Road.
- A $338,863 construction contract to Lizzette Medina Landscape Management, Evanston, IL, for landscaping work at the Illinois Route 251 Interchange on the Reagan Memorial Tollway (I-88).
- A $3.7 million professional engineering services contract to Parsons Transportation Group Inc., Chicago, IL, for planning studies and master plan services to improve the Illinois Route 390 Tollway from Lake Street to County Farm Road.
The contracts approved today include one prime contractor, 11 subcontractors and five subconsultants that are certified as disadvantaged, minority- and women-owned business enterprise (D/M/WBE) firms, as well as two subcontractor and two subconsultants that are certified veteran-owned firms. Commitments for D/M/WBE participation range from 1.5 to 5 percent per contract and commitments for veteran participation range from 25 to 30 percent per contract.
Illinois Tollway professional engineering services contracts are selected in accordance with the qualifications-based selection process (Illinois Public Act 87-673 (30 ILCS 535/1-535/80) Architectural, Engineering and Land Surveying Qualifications-Based Selection Act), which requires state agencies to select professional architects, engineers and surveyors on the basis of demonstrated competence and professional qualifications, rather than low bid. Contract services staff from the Engineering Department checks statements of interest to ensure that specified pre-qualifications and documentation requirements are met. Tollway engineers and managers then review and score statements of interest based on the advertised selection criteria service. Tollway Diversity Department staff also reviews the statements of interest for compliance with advertised diversity criteria. Executives from the Engineering Department then review the scoring, as well as each firm’s capacity, and identify the top recommended firms per project. To complete the selection, a committee of Tollway professionals and independent engineering officials considers the top recommended firms and finalizes the top three firms in ranked order. The Tollway then seeks to negotiate a final contract price with the top-ranked firm. The award of a professional engineering services contract is dependent on approval by the Tollway Board of Directors.
Construction contracts for Illinois Tollway projects are competitively bid under the rules of the Illinois Procurement Code. As part of the process, contractors’ bid submissions for construction work advertised by the Tollway are opened and read aloud during public bid opening meetings, which are also broadcast live on the Tollway’s website. Following an agency review process, the lowest, responsible and responsive bid is presented to the Illinois Tollway Board of Directors for review and approval.
The Illinois Tollway provides detailed information about current Tollway construction contracts through the Construction Contract Tracker on the Tollway’s website at illinoistollway.com. Contractors and consultants can also access resources online to help them learn about how to do business with the Tollway, including construction bid-letting schedules, professional service bulletins, manuals and construction bid calendars. These resources can be found in the “Doing Business” section of the Tollway’s website.
About Move Illinois
The Illinois Tollway’s 15-year, $14 billion capital program, Move Illinois: The Illinois Tollway Driving the Future, is improving mobility, relieving congestion, reducing pollution, creating as many as 120,000 jobs and linking economies throughout the region. The first six years of Move Illinois are on schedule and within budget, delivering the new Illinois Route 390 Tollway and a rebuilt and widened Jane Addams Memorial Tollway (I-90) with its new SmartRoad corridor, as well as opening a new interchange connecting the Tri-State Tollway (I-294) to I-57. Progress continues on projects addressing the remaining needs of the existing Tollway system, delivering the new I-490 Tollway Project and reconstruction of the Central Tri-State Tollway (I-294) and planning for emerging projects.
About the Illinois Tollway
The Illinois Tollway is a user-fee system that receives no state or federal funds for maintenance and operations. The agency maintains and operates 294 miles of roadways in 12 counties in Northern Illinois, including the Reagan Memorial Tollway (I-88), the Veterans Memorial Tollway (I-355), the Jane Addams Memorial Tollway (I-90), the Tri-State Tollway (I-94/I-294/I-80) and the Illinois Route 390 Tollway.
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