A half-mile stretch of Irving Park Road was closed Monday evening and will remain that way for four months after several truck drivers hit a new railroad bridge.
The Illinois Department of Transportation said truckers ignored a posted detour and struck the new flyover bridge, which just opened Sunday with a clearance of 12 feet, 6 inches.
It wasn't immediately known how badly the bridge was damaged, but IDOT officials closed Irving Park Road between York and the South Access Road, a stretch that officials say is used by about 37,000 vehicles each day.
South Access Road will remain open to O’Hare Airport cargo deliveries during the closure and accessible via the detour route, IDOT officials said.
Other vehicles will be detoured:
- Eastbound IL 19 traffic will turn north on to York Rd./Elmhurst Rd., east on IL Rte 72 (Touhy Ave), east on to IL72 (Higgins Rd), south on US Rte. 12/45/Mannheim Rd.
- Westbound IL 19 traffic will turn north on to US Route 12/45/Mannheim Rd., west on IL72/Higgins Rd., west on IL 72/Touhy Ave, south on Elmhurst Rd./York Rd.
