Projects

Wacker Drive Reconstruction

Wacker Drive Reconstruction

CHICAGO, Illinois
United States
Wacker Drive

TYLin provided design engineering services for the reconstruction of the interchange of Wacker Drive and Congress Parkway and a portion of the Wacker Drive Viaduct in Chicago, Illinois.

Prioritizing driver safety, the Wacker Drive Reconstruction project improved the functional operation of the Congress Parkway interchange and added green space in the interchange area. The project was completed for the Chicago Department of Transportation.  

Wacker Drive is a major two-way, two-level roadway that connects Congress Parkway (I-290) to Lake Shore Drive on the north-east end. TYLin’s design replaced existing interchange and viaduct structures that were in poor condition. A new interchange geometry also corrected multiple operational issues, such as the lack of merge lanes for traffic entering and exiting Wacker Drive from Congress Parkway. 

TYLin’s design also reduced the number of exit and entrance points to and from lower Wacker Drive, provided landscaped medians along the length of upper Wacker Drive, increased the vertical clearance on the lower level, and improved the through-route function of the lower level. 

PROJECT HIGHLIGHTS: 

  • The construction of Wacker Drive was successfully completed while work took place two other adjacent major transportation projects. 
  • TYLin developed an overall area traffic management plan, considering the adjacent projects and their individual construction staging schedules. 
  • All public and private utilities were relocated within the Wacker Drive project corridor. 
  • Extensive coordination was required with adjacent businesses, Chicago Transit Authority bus service, and multiple stakeholders. 

Image credit: Blueprint22 Photography

Services

Awards
Award of Merit, 2015
International Federation of Consulting Engineers (FIDIC)
Grand Conceptor Award, 2014
American Council of Engineering Companies (ACEC)
National Grand Award, 2014
American Council of Engineering Companies (ACEC)
Honor Award, 2014
American Council of Engineering Companies of Illinois (ACEC-IL)
Project of the Year, 2013
Post-Tensioning Institute (PTI)