Welcome to Tri-Cities Central, a twice-weekly newsletter highlighting local happenings in Batavia, Geneva, St. Charles and surrounding communities.
Get yours: subscribe here. Refer a friend: share this link.
Kane County is advancing a plan to fix two of the most crash-heavy intersections in the Tri-Cities: where Fabyan Parkway meets Route 31 and Route 25 over the Fox River.
The Kane County Division of Transportation (KDOT) presented the proposal at a May 20 public meeting, which included a wider bridge and new turn lanes on both ends.
Crash records from KDOT's presentation show 126 wrecks at the Route 31 intersection and 64 at Route 25 between 2018 and 2022. County officials suggest that addressing deficiencies at both can reduce the number of crashes.
The project aims to address a situation that has long irked residents. In fact, Tri-Cities Central ran a poll in 2024 asking readers to vote for the Tri-Cities’ “worst intersection” — and the Fabyan/Route 31 crossing won in a landslide.
Here's what to know:
The key problem: According to KDOT, at Route 31, Fabyan Parkway meets the highway at a 68-degree skew instead of a standard near-90-degree crossing, which is also short of the 75-degree minimum in IDOT's design policy. That awkward angle makes it tough for drivers to judge gaps in oncoming traffic, and according to the Batavia 5th Ward Blog, roughly half of all crashes at the intersection involve a left turn, including a fatal crash in 2015. Neither intersection currently has a right-turn lane.
What's on the table: The plan adds protected left-turn lanes and right-turn lanes at Route 31, right-turn lanes at Route 25, and protected left-turn signals at both. The Fox River bridge would grow from four lanes to six (three in each direction) and gain sidewalks and a multi-use path, since there's currently no way to walk or bike across the river at this crossing.
What’s next? Preliminary engineering and environmental review wrap up in 2027, with detailed design and right-of-way acquisition planned for 2027 to 2029 and construction (depending on funding) targeted for 2029 or 2030. The project area borders the historic Campana building and the Holmstad retirement community, and any land KDOT needs would go through a standard survey, appraisal, and negotiation process.
The Fabyan crossing isn't the only piece of Route 31 getting attention. According to the Batavia 5th Ward Blog, Batavia is working to extend the 2024 "road diet" (which narrowed stretches of Route 31 to three lanes with a center turn lane) further into the downtown corridor, targeting 2027 for potential construction.
📖 Thanks for reading
Please feel free to reach out to [email protected] with questions or comments.
Not signed up yet? Subscribe here.