When will the 157 and 162 intersection in Glen Carbon reopen?

Drivers waiting on the Illinois 157 and Illinois 162 intersection in Glen Carbon will wait about a month longer than planned. The Illinois Department of Transportation now estimates that Illinois 157 and the east leg of Illinois 162 will open around Thanksgiving rather than Oct. 31, according to Dawn Johnson, communications outreach liaison for IDOT.

Johnson attributed the change to utility delays in an Aug. 17 email reported by The Intelligencer. That pushes the reopening of one of the busier north-south connections in Glen Carbon into late November, though the estimate has not been tied to a specific calendar date in IDOT's statement.

Key details

• The revised estimate applies to the opening of Illinois 157 and the east leg of Illinois 162, according to IDOT.
• The previous estimated completion date was Oct. 31.
• IDOT cited utility delays as the reason for the extension.
• Beams for the new Illinois 157 bridge were set in place on the morning of Aug. 17, Johnson said.
• Construction on the project began in February, according to The Intelligencer.
• The west leg of Illinois 162 is expected to reopen in summer 2027, which would mark completion of the overall project.
• The scope includes two new bridges, a new signalized four-way intersection, and new bicycle and pedestrian accommodations.

What changed on the Illinois 157 and 162 project?

The reopening estimate moved. IDOT had been targeting Oct. 31 for traffic to return to Illinois 157 and the east leg of Illinois 162. Johnson said the estimated completion date has been extended to around Thanksgiving because of utility delays.

IDOT has not publicly identified which utility or utilities caused the holdup, and the statement did not break down how much of the delay traces to any single piece of work.

The longer-term schedule appears unchanged. The west leg of Illinois 162 is still expected to reopen in summer 2027, which is when the full project is scheduled to wrap.

What is being built at the intersection?

The project replaces the offset intersection with a single squared-up crossing. IDOT lists three main components:

• Two new bridges, one carrying Illinois 157 and one carrying Illinois 162.
• A new signalized four-way intersection at Illinois 157 and Illinois 162.
• New bicycle and pedestrian accommodations, including a dedicated bridge over Judy's Branch Creek.

The village of Glen Carbon describes the roadway piece as a realignment of the west leg of Illinois 162 to tie into the east leg at a proposed traffic signal, which eliminates the two offset intersections that currently operate under stop control.

That realignment is the reason the west leg stays closed well past the rest of the work. Reopening 157 and the east leg of 162 gets through traffic moving again, but the new tie-in on the west side is a separate build.

Where does the work stand right now?

Bridge work is the visible phase. Johnson said beams for the new Illinois 157 bridge were set in place the morning of Aug. 17.

That follows earlier progress IDOT described in July, when most of the project's earthwork had been completed. Crews at that point were paving Illinois 157 and the east leg of Illinois 162, with work also underway on the bridge foundations and piers for the new Illinois 157 bridge.

Setting beams is a milestone rather than a finish line. Deck work, approach paving, signal installation, and striping all follow before an intersection carries traffic, and IDOT has not published a task-by-task schedule for the remaining months.

What does the delay mean for drivers?

The intersection stays fully closed until IDOT opens it. Signed detours put through traffic on I-55/70, I-255, I-270 and Illinois 159, according to IDOT's closure notice issued ahead of the shutdown.

The village has said The Cabin at Judy's Creek and the Madison County Transit lot remain accessible during the road project.

An extra month of closure lands during a stretch that includes the start of the school year and the run-up to the holidays. IDOT has not indicated whether the detour routes or access points will change between now and the revised opening.

Anyone tracking the corridor should treat the Thanksgiving reference as an estimate. IDOT framed it as an estimated completion date, and the agency has already moved the target once.

What happens next

The next confirmed milestone is the opening of Illinois 157 and the east leg of Illinois 162, currently estimated for around Thanksgiving. After that, the west leg of Illinois 162 remains closed until its expected reopening in summer 2027, which completes the overall project.

IDOT has not announced a firm reopening date, a construction update schedule, or any further changes to the 2027 timeline.

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