Members of the Northwestern Indiana Regional Planning Commission approved the Illiana Corridor project, an estimated $1.3-billion toll road that would serve primarily as a trucking corridor linking interstate highways in northern Illinois and Indiana. The action was considered a crucial vote that could have scuttled the project.
Chicago's Metropolitan Agency for Planning’s Policy Committee approved the controversial Illiana proposal on Oct. 17.
Illinois Transportation Secretary Ann Schneider said much work remains over the next year to complete planning and start soliciting bids from private investors who would partner with the state. Most of the funding for the project is expected to come from a private concessionaire as part of a public-private partnership that Illinois and Indiana would award jointly.
