Joliet residents deserve reliable bridges, reasonable traffic conditions, and transparency about the infrastructure they depend on every day.

The six roadway drawbridges crossing the Des Plaines River are essential transportation routes for residents, commuters, businesses, and emergency responders. Yet bridge openings, mechanical problems, construction projects, and prolonged closures can leave motorists facing significant delays and limited alternatives.

When one bridge is unavailable, traffic must shift to other crossings. When another bridge opens for river traffic, the resulting congestion can affect surrounding streets and intersections.

This is not simply an inconvenience. It raises legitimate concerns about transportation reliability, emergency response, public safety, and accountability.

We are calling on the Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT), the U.S. Coast Guard, and the City of Joliet to work together to address the following issues:

1. Extend Rush-Hour Opening Restrictions

Review and extend existing drawbridge operating restrictions to prevent routine openings during weekday peak commuting periods, preferably from 7:00–9:00 a.m. and 4:00–6:00 p.m., while preserving legally required exceptions for emergencies and essential navigation.

2. Improve Bridge Maintenance and Reliability

Provide clear maintenance schedules, repair timelines, and regular public updates regarding the condition and operational status of all six roadway drawbridges:

● Ruby Street Bridge

● Jackson Street Bridge

● Cass Street Bridge

● Jefferson Street Bridge

● McDonough Street Bridge

● Brandon Road Bridge

3. Demand Accountability for Extended Closures

Provide explanations for prolonged bridge closures, including the causes of delays, repair progress, anticipated reopening dates, and measures being taken to prevent similar disruptions.

4. Make Bridge Operations Publicly Accessible

Establish a publicly accessible system providing current bridge status, scheduled maintenance, unexpected closures, and available information about bridge openings.

Residents should not have to guess whether a bridge is operational or discover a closure only after encountering backed-up traffic.

5. Address Traffic Congestion and Emergency Access

Conduct or publish traffic impact assessments examining how bridge openings and closures affect commuting times, nearby intersections, emergency vehicle access, and alternate river crossings.

When multiple bridges are unavailable or temporarily inaccessible, the resulting traffic conditions deserve serious consideration.

6. Improve Coordination of Bridge Operations

Evaluate opportunities to improve coordination among bridge operators, transportation agencies, and commercial river traffic to minimize unnecessary disruption to roadway users.

Bridge operations should account for the effects that simultaneous or closely timed openings may have on surrounding traffic.

7. Require Public Communication and Oversight

Provide regular public updates and opportunities for residents to raise concerns, ask questions, and review progress toward improving bridge reliability.

The public deserves clear information about infrastructure projects, delays, and decisions that affect daily transportation.

Why This Matters

Joliet residents should not have to accept prolonged infrastructure disruptions without clear explanations, reasonable timelines, and meaningful efforts to reduce their impact.

We recognize the importance of commercial navigation along the Des Plaines River. This petition does not seek to eliminate river access. It calls for a fairer balance between navigation needs and the safety, mobility, and daily lives of the people who depend on Joliet’s bridges.

We urge the U.S. Coast Guard, IDOT, and the City of Joliet to review these concerns, publicly respond to the requested improvements, and develop a coordinated plan for more reliable and transparent bridge operations.

Joliet deserves better infrastructure management, better communication, and greater accountability.

Sign this petition to demand meaningful improvements to Joliet’s six drawbridges.

 

Photo Credit

Photograph: Roadway View of Cass Street Bridge During a Drawbridge Opening (2013), by Josh Lintz (FormulaNone), via Wikimedia Commons.

Original photograph:
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Roadway_view_of_Cass_Street_Bridge_during_a_drawbridge_opening_(2013).jpg

Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0 (CC BY-SA 2.0):
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/