Local
1.5-mile I-490 segment opens in Franklin Park as $4.3B project advances
A 1.5-mile section of the planned I-490 Tollway opened in both directions Saturday between I-294 and Franklin Avenue in Franklin Park. The full project is intended to link the Jane Addams and Tri-State tollways while routing traffic around the western edge of O’Hare.
A 1.5-mile stretch of the new I-490 Tollway opened to traffic in both directions early Saturday in Franklin Park, marking the first section of the planned route to begin carrying drivers and trucks.
The segment runs between the I-294 Tollway and Franklin Avenue. The next phase of construction is moving north and includes an interchange with the I-390 Tollway, which begins in Hanover Park.
When finished, I-490 is planned to connect the Jane Addams Tollway near Des Plaines with the Tri-State Tollway in Franklin Park, skirting O’Hare International Airport’s western edge. The connection is expected to give freight companies and suburban commuters a route between the northwest suburbs without traveling through Rosemont.
The $4.3 billion project began in 2018 and has also involved widening and modernizing I-294. The Franklin Avenue interchange and the northern extension of I-490 are expected to open in 2029.