A bumpy stretch of North Lake Shore Drive near downtown will be resurfaced this year, along with at least 300 miles of streets in Chicago, officials will announce Monday.
The first 61 miles of main roadways to be repaved starting in the spring have already been identified, even before the annual proliferation of potholes begins, according to the Chicago Department of Transportation.
The longest segments include:
* North Lake Shore Drive in both directions between North and Grand avenues.
* 115th Street between Vincennes Avenue and State Street.
* King Drive between Cermak Road and 37th Street.
* Wentworth Avenue between Pershing Road and the Stevenson Expressway (Interstate Highway 55).
* Cicero Avenue between Division Street and the Eisenhower Expressway (Interstate Highway 290).
* Irving Park Road between Cumberland Avenue and Forest Preserve Avenue.
* Douglas Boulevard between Independence Boulevard and Sacramento Drive.
Mayor Rahm Emanuel set a goal when he took office in 2011 to resurface more than 1,000 miles of arterial streets during his first term. CDOT’s new standard is to repave at least 300 miles of roads annually, officials said.
Last year, CDOT, the city Department of Water Management, private contractors and utility companies coordinated their project schedules to avoid tearing up newly paved streets. The result was that 343 miles of roadway were resurfaced, including more than 1,000 blocks of residential streets, officials said.
The focus on reducing project conflicts that require opening a street more than once led to a savings of roughly $23 million, officials said.
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