US 30 from Illinois 136 to Illinois 40

Summary

US Route 30 (also known as Lincoln Highway) is a major east-west highway facility between northwestern Illinois and eastern Iowa. Within the project study area, US 30 passes through the City of Morrison and is in close proximity to the City of Fulton, the City of Rock Falls, the City of Sterling, and the City of Lyndon. US 30 connects to Clinton, Iowa, just west of the study area. Currently, US 30 is a two-lane, undivided highway within the project limits.

Project

A corridor feasibility study was conducted for the construction of a four-lane improvement to US 30 within a study area that extends along existing US Route 30, approximately 18 miles from the city limits of the City of Fulton near the Mississippi River, to Interstate Route 88 west of Rock Falls. This multi-lane expressway facility would provide increased access to Interstate Route 88 from adjacent communities and eliminate through truck traffic from the City of Morrison.

Kaskaskia Engineering Group, LLC (KEG) provided GIS services for the entire project. The primary duties included mapping environmental resources, developing figures to support the analysis of an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS), and developing mapping products for the Context Sensitive Solutions (CSS) process, including all Community Advisory Group (CAG) and Project Study Group (PSG) meetings. In addition, KEG incorporated all-natural, cultural, and socioeconomic information into a GIS database; interpreted aerial photography for the preliminary identification of terrestrial cover types and wetlands; compared aerial photography with NWI mapping for wetland discrepancies, and assisted in quantifying all environmental impacts impacted by the proposed transportation corridors. The resulting GIS maps assisted in investigating discrepancies, including biological, socioeconomic, historic, and archaeological research, and continuing field efforts.

Based on the outcome of the Feasibility Study, funding was provided for the preparation of an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) and Phase I Design Report for this project. KEG assisted the design team of Volkert, Inc. and Howard R. Green Company with the preparation of the EIS. The EIS process included intensive field investigations for threatened and endangered species, wetlands, and historic resources.

In addition, KEG provided GIS services for mapping resources within the corridor, assessing the impacts of improvement alternatives, and providing exhibits to support the public involvement activities, utilizing the Illinois Department of Transportation’s CSS process.

As part of the EIS process, KEG assisted in the Draft EIS, approved in April 2011, and the Supplemental DEIS (SDEIS), approved in September 2014. KEG also led the approval of the Final EIS/Record of Decision (FEIS/ROD), approved in June 2017, after the selection of the No-Build Alternative as the preferred alternative via an Errata attached to the SDEIS, in lieu of a traditional FEIS and pursuant to MAP-21.