Orland Park leaders press state on 140th Street expansion; discuss I‑80/Wolf Road interchange

Orland Park Mayor Jim Dodge and State Senator Bill Cunningham said they are pushing to place a long‑standing 140th Street expansion into the Illinois Department of Transportation’s five‑year capital plan to secure state funding for the project.

"This is an $85,000,000 project," Mayor Jim Dodge said, asking legislators to explain how engineering, IDOT planning and the state budget interact for large corridor work. Senator Bill Cunningham said the project has been a priority in the district and noted the mechanics of state planning: "the state does a 5 year plan, IDOT ... to decide on where they're gonna do long term planning and where billions of dollars in road investment goes." He added that revenue already exists in the state road fund and that the fund is replenished by motorists: "You've paid for that every time you buy gas."

Why it matters: The 140th Street corridor connects local streets to regional arteries and proponents say the expansion would reduce idling and congestion. Officials also warned that political opposition in neighboring jurisdictions can alter IDOT priorities. "If they see resistance coming from 1 place, that gives them a pretty good excuse to go somewhere else with the funding," Cunningham said, urging coordination with surrounding towns.

Regional coordination and an I‑80 interchange: Mayor Dodge and village manager George said Orland Park is pursuing conversations with neighboring mayors to gauge support for an interchange on I‑80 at Wolf Road — a project that, if advanced, could take a decade or more from planning to ribbon cutting. "If we started tomorrow, ... 15 years from now, we'll all be at the ribbon cutting," Dodge said, underscoring the long lead time for large highway projects.

Background and process details: Officials described how IDOT evaluates projects on traffic, commerce and need, and how the state’s restricted road fund (gas tax receipts) is earmarked for transportation uses. They cautioned that environmental concerns, easement needs and resident pushback along proposed alignments — especially in portions of Will County — are active hurdles.

What’s next: Town officials said they will continue local outreach to neighboring municipalities and advocate to state leaders to get the 140th Street work prioritized inside the next IDOT capital plan. No formal state action or fiscal commitment was recorded during the forum.