Final Phase of Kennedy Expressway Construction Causes Traffic Closures in Chicago

CHICAGO (WLS) — The final phase of Kennedy Expressway construction is now underway after getting started Monday night.

The Kennedy express lanes are now officially closed heading inbound into the city until Thanksgiving.

ABC7 Chicago is now streaming 24/7. Click here to watch

That means you’ll want to budget for more traffic and extra time on your morning commute.

Crews were preparing for the final stage of the reconstruction project overnight by establishing work zones with overnight ramp and lane closures.

The outbound Kennedy is losing two mainline lanes and the reversible express lanes will remain outbound-only.

“It will resemble what we had in the first year, where two lanes were available inbound. Therefore, we will maintain two lanes for local traffic and two lanes for reversible lanes to ensure we have four outbound lanes,” explained Jon Schumacher, the bureau chief of construction.

For travelers heading to O’Hare, IDOT cautions that the express lanes cannot be exited until Foster, so drivers heading downtown should remain on the Kennedy mainline to reach the airport.

The $169 million rehabilitation project started in 2023, repairing 36 bridge structures, replacing signs, LED light upgrades, pavement patching, and steel structural repairs.

The set up for this next process will take several days, so expect the full closures to be in effect by the end of the week.