Shorewood bridge remaining down to 1 lane indefinitely

The Seil Road Bridge in Shorewood will remain a one-lane bridge indefinitely.

However, as of Thursday, May 22, new bridge and road designs are 100% complete, according to a news release from the village of Shorewood.

The Seil Road and Bridge Reconstruction Project includes the construction of a new bridge with streetlights, pedestrian access and mixed-use path, according to the release.

The project also includes changing Seil Road from a two-lane rural cross-section to a three-lane rural cross-section, along with adding two mini roundabouts, according to the release.

But per the Illinois Department of Transportation‘s annual bridge inspection report, the Seil Road Bridge will remain reduced to one lane – in the center of the bridge – under a 5-ton weight limit indefinitely, according to the release.

The Illinois Department of Transportation required the weight limit be reduced to 5 tons after an April 23, 2023, bridge inspection.

In May 2024, a partial bridge closure was added due to the deterioration of the bridge beams, according to the release. The beams have not deteriorated further since shifting traffic to the middle of the bridge, according to the release.

The village “will continue to enforce the lane reduction to keep live loads off the problem beams while providing safe travel to westbound traffic,” according to the release.

Eastbound traffic still is forbidden to use the bridge, according to the release.

Except for residents, motorists should avoid the bridge and use suggested detours, according to the release. For instance, motorists should travel south on River Road to eastbound Mound Road, to northbound Frontage Road back to Seil Road, according to the release.

Seil Road Bridge was constructed in the early 1980s, and in 2019, the village saw the bridge needed to replaced, according to the village.

Each year, the village is required by the state to have a licensed structural engineer inspect the Seil Road Bridge due to the bridge’s age and condition.

In 2021, Shorewood acquired Christopher B. Burke Engineering for phase two engineering design, according to the release.

Shorewood is now working with several property owners near the project location for “securing additional right-of-way along the road and parkways, and obtaining temporary easements for construction,” according to the release.

Although most negotiations are complete, Shorewood began the eminent domain process six months ago, which can last between six and 24 months before the project can go out to bid, according to the release.

Once a bid is awarded, construction could take 18 to 24 months, according to the release.

For the past five years, Shorewood has been budgeting for the Seil Road Bridge reconstruction and the associated road construction as part of its capital improvement plan, since the two projects cost a total of $12 million, according to the release.

Shorewood was awarded a $4 million Surface Transportation Program Grant for the bridge in 2020, according to the release.