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CHICAGO (AP) — An effort to scuttle the Illiana Expressway between Indiana and Illinois has come up short in a vote by top regional planners.
Board members of the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning met Wednesday to consider draft updates to the region's long-term infrastructure and land use plan.
A motion to approve the update without the tollway fell short by two votes. But in a separate vote, opponents of the road blocked the plan's adoption as is, with the Illiana included.
That leaves the matter up to a decisive vote Thursday by a planning policy committee. Its approval is necessary to unlock federal funds for the 47-mile tollway south of Chicago.
Critics call the $1.5 billion project unnecessary and warn it will leave taxpayers on the hook if toll revenue falls short.
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