The Illinois Department of Transportation says just a few weeks remain for the public to vote for Chicago's Forest Hill Flyover as the top transportation project in the nation.
A win would bring Illinois national recognition and $10,000 in prize money, which IDOT says it will award to the Golden Hope Foundation. The agency describes the group as a Chicago organization that helps local children through scholarship assistance, back-to-school backpack drives and science, technology, engineering and mathematics summer camps.
About the contest
The Forest Hill Flyover is a Top 12 finalist in the America's Transportation Awards, the highest honor for state departments of transportation, according to IDOT's news release posted on the agency's website. The competition is hosted by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials.
The project is competing for both the national Grand Prize and the People's Choice Award, according to the release. Each comes with $10,000 in prize money for a charity or transportation-related scholarship fund chosen by the winning state. An independent panel of transportation experts selects the Grand Prize winner, while the public decides the People's Choice Award through an online vote.
How to vote
The public can cast one vote a day for the People's Choice Award through Nov. 15 at www.americastransportationawards.org, according to IDOT. The winning projects will be announced Nov. 17 in Louisville, Kentucky.
About the project
According to IDOT, the Forest Hill Flyover added an elevated rail corridor and additional tracks on Chicago's South Side at what was one of the worst rail bottlenecks in the country, separating trains from vehicle, bicycle and pedestrian traffic. The agency says the improvement has decreased noise, reduced emissions and improved reliability for first responders while keeping an estimated $652 billion worth of goods moving through Chicago by rail each year.
The project is part of the Chicago Region Environmental and Transportation Efficiency Program, or CREATE, a public-private partnership between railroads and state and local governments.
Source: the original release