Illinois Route 3
IL 3 highlighted in red | ||||
Route information | ||||
Maintained by IDOT | ||||
Length | 187.44 mi[1] (301.66 km) | |||
Existed | November 5, 1918[2]–present | |||
Major junctions | ||||
South end | ![]() ![]() | |||
North end | ![]() | |||
Location | ||||
Country | United States | |||
State | Illinois | |||
Counties | Alexander, Union, Jackson, Randolph, Monroe, St. Clair, Madison, Jersey | |||
Highway system | ||||
|
Illinois Route 3 (IL 3) is a 187.44-mile-long (301.66 km) major north–south arterial state highway in southwestern Illinois. It has its southern terminus at Cairo Junction (about four miles (6.4 km) north of Cairo) at the intersection of U.S. Route 51 (US 51) and Illinois Route 37, and its northern terminus in Grafton at IL 100.
Route description
[edit]The majority of IL 3 has four lanes from Waterloo to Godfrey, with brief six-lane stretches from the entrance to the McKinley Bridge in Venice to near the River's Edge area (formerly the Army Depot) in Granite City and near Alton Square Mall in Alton, as well as a brief two-laned section between its separation from I-55, I-64, and US 40 in East St. Louis and Venice. It is also two-laned the majority of the southern part from Waterloo to Cairo near areas of the Shawnee National Forest, as well as the northern portion from Godfrey to Grafton. It briefly overlaps IL 111 at Alton, I-255 and US 50, and IL 127 north of Cache.
IL 3 parallels the Mississippi River for the entire length of its journey, and it carries the Illinois portion of the Great River Road for most of its length. South of St. Louis, I-55 is its parallel on the west side of the river, along with US 61. The road runs along many historical sites along the Mississippi River, and is the closest Illinois state highway to the old state capital of Kaskaskia.
History
[edit]Original 1918 route
[edit]The original IL 3 route went from Chester in southern Illinois to Morrison in northwest Illinois via Rock Island. With the completion of highway bridges over the Mississippi River (e.g. Clark Bridge at Alton) U.S. Route 67 (US 67) was extended from St. Louis to Godfrey and replaced the original IL 3 to Rock Island. Today, this route is still the major north–south corridor for western Illinois—and the only major Illinois north–south route never converted to the Interstate Highway System like I-57, I-55, or I-39.
Current route
[edit]On August 4, 1976, the new Berm Highway from Wood River to Alton was opened.[3] It was signed as IL 3, which left the old alignment on Lewis and Clark Boulevard and Broadway unmarked. However, on June 29, 1987, the Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) built the new Madison Avenue extension in Wood River and marked that road and the Berm Highway as IL 143[4] and truncated IL 3 at IL 143 (highway signage and IDOT planning maps suggested otherwise, however). This new terminus for Route 3 was short-lived, however.
On November 26, 1987, a new section of Homer M. Adams Parkway in Alton opened to traffic, and IL 3 was extended onto Lewis and Clark Boulevard (a former IL 3 alignment) back into Alton and onto the extension. IL 3 was then cosigned with IL 111 until the intersection with Godfrey Road, where IL 3 takes over the former IL 100 alignment.[5]
Major intersections
[edit]County | Location | mi[1][6] | km | Exit | Destinations | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Alexander | Cairo | 0.8 | 1.3 | ![]() ![]() | IDOT signs this as southern terminus; southern end of Great River Road/Lincoln Heritage Trail overlap; I-57 exit 1; highway continues as US 51/GRR/LHT south | |
Olive Branch | Horseshoe Lake Conservation Area, Miller City | |||||
| 8.5 | 13.7 | ![]() ![]() | |||
McClure | 26.0 | 41.8 | ![]() ![]() | Southern end of IL 146 overlap | ||
Union | Ware | 37.7 | 60.7 | ![]() ![]() ![]() | Northern end of IL 146 overlap | |
Jackson | Grand Tower | 51.3 | 82.6 | ![]() ![]() ![]() | ||
| 53.0 | 85.3 | ![]() ![]() ![]() | |||
| Gorham Road - Gorham, Neunert, Jacob | State maintained | ||||
| 60.6 | 97.5 | ![]() ![]() | |||
| 65.0 | 104.6 | ![]() ![]() | |||
Randolph | | 80.6 | 129.7 | ![]() ![]() ![]() | Northern end of Great River Road overlap; state maintained | |
Chester | 83.4 | 134.2 | ![]() ![]() | Southern end of IL 150 overlap | ||
83.6 | 134.5 | ![]() ![]() | Northern end of IL 150 overlap | |||
83.9 | 135.0 | ![]() ![]() ![]() | Southern end of Great River Road Spur overlap | |||
84.2 | 135.5 | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | Northern end of Great River Road Spur overlap; southern end of Great River Road overlap | |||
| 89.8 | 144.5 | ![]() ![]() | State maintained to Fort Kaskaskia | ||
| Roots Road - River Ferry, Modoc, Kaskaskia Lock and Dam, Fort de Chartres Historic Site | State maintained | ||||
Ruma | 103.1 | 165.9 | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | Northern end of Lincoln Heritage Trail overlap | ||
Red Bud | 108.6 | 174.8 | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | |||
Monroe | | Kaskaskia Road - Burksville, Renault, Illinois Caverns State Natural Area | ||||
Waterloo | 122.2 | 196.7 | ![]() | |||
Columbia | 129.5 | 208.4 | ![]() ![]() | Interchange | ||
133.1 | 214.2 | — | Quarry Road / Palmer Road | South end of freeway | ||
134.3 | 216.1 | — | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | Southern end of I-255/US 50 overlap; I-255 exit 6 | ||
St. Clair | Dupo | 136.5 | 219.7 | 9 | Dupo | Exit number follows I-255 |
137.4 | 221.1 | — | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | North end of freeway; northern end of I-255/US 50 overlap; I-255 exit 10 | ||
Cahokia | 141.2 | 227.2 | ![]() ![]() | |||
East St. Louis | 144.2– 144.8 | 232.1– 233.0 | — | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | South end of freeway; I-55 north/I-64 east exit 1; former I-70 west | |
— | 13th Street / Tudor Avenue | No southbound entrance | ||||
— | Barack Obama Avenue – East St. Louis, Business District, Casino Queen | Formerly Fourth Street; northbound exit and southbound entrance | ||||
— | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | South end of I-55/I-64/US 40 concurrency; southbound left exit and northbound left entrance; I-55 south/I-64 west exit 1; former I-70 west | ||||
145.7 | 234.5 | 2A | Third Street – Eads Bridge, Casino Queen | Exit numbers follow I-55/I-64; southbound exit and northbound entrance | ||
146.0 | 235.0 | 2B-C | Martin Luther King Bridge – Downtown St. Louis | Signed as exits 2B (left exit) and 2C (right exit); no northbound exits | ||
146.2– 146.8 | 235.3– 236.3 | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | North end of freeway; northern end of I-55/I-64/US 40/Great River Road overlap; I-55 north exit 3, south exit 3A; I-64 exit 3; I-70 east exit 3 | |||
Fairmont City | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | Interchange via connector road; I-70 exit 2 | ||||
Madison | Venice | 151.1 | 243.2 | McKinley Bridge – St. Louis | State maintained | |
Granite City | 158.4 | 254.9 | ![]() ![]() | Southern end of Historic US 66 overlap; state maintained | ||
158.6 | 255.2 | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | Southern end of Great River Road overlap; I-270 exit 3; northern end of Historic US 66 overlap | |||
Hartford | 161.6 | 260.1 | ![]() ![]() | Southern end of Meeting of the Great Rivers overlap; New Poag Rd. south is former US 67 south | ||
Hawthorne Street – Hartford | State maintained | |||||
Wood River | 165.6 | 266.5 | ![]() ![]() | Northern end of Great River Road/Meeting of the Great Rivers overlap | ||
Alton | 169.3 | 272.5 | ![]() ![]() ![]() | Interchange; southern end of IL 111 overlap | ||
Godfrey | 173.0 | 278.4 | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | Northern end of IL 111 overlap | ||
Jersey | | 182.0 | 292.9 | ![]() ![]() | ||
Grafton | 190.0 | 305.8 | ![]() ![]() | Northern terminus; road continues south as Market Street | ||
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi
|
References
[edit]- ^ a b Illinois Technology Transfer Center (2007). "T2 GIS Data". Illinois Department of Transportation. Retrieved November 8, 2007.
- ^ Carlson, Rick (March 15, 2006). "Routes 1 through 20". Illinois State Highways Page. Retrieved March 24, 2006.[self-published source].
- ^ Alton Telegraph. August 4, 1976.
{{cite news}}
: Missing or empty|title=
(help)[full citation needed] - ^ Alton Telegraph. June 30, 1987.
{{cite news}}
: Missing or empty|title=
(help)[full citation needed] - ^ Alton Telegraph. November 26, 1987.
{{cite news}}
: Missing or empty|title=
(help)[full citation needed] - ^ Google Maps estimate[full citation needed]
External links
[edit]![](http://up.wiki.x.io/wikipedia/en/thumb/4/4a/Commons-logo.svg/30px-Commons-logo.svg.png)
- State highways in Illinois
- Metro East
- Great River Road
- Transportation in Alexander County, Illinois
- Transportation in Union County, Illinois
- Transportation in Jackson County, Illinois
- Transportation in Randolph County, Illinois
- Transportation in Monroe County, Illinois
- Transportation in St. Clair County, Illinois
- Transportation in Madison County, Illinois
- Transportation in Jersey County, Illinois