About Reconnect Rockford
The City of Rockford, Illinois is working to reconfigure the Whiteman Street Interchange, starting with converting 6th Street and 9th Street from one-way to two-way streets. While the main focus of Reconnect Rockford is to reconfigure, repair, and replace aging roadway infrastructure along 6th Street and 9th Street, the benefits will be felt across the city.
Due to the variety of project benefits and impacts, the City of Rockford was able to obtain construction grant funding through the Reconnecting Communities and Neighborhoods (RCN) Program from the U.S. Department of Transportation. The RCN Program provides funding for planning, capital, and regional projects that advance community-centered connection transportation projects.
The project will:
Public Information Meeting
A public information meeting took place on Wednesday, October 23, 2024 from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. at Prairie Street Brewing Company. Thank you to everyone who attended!
Click the button below to review the exhibits shown at the meeting.
Project History
The Whitman Interchange was constructed in the early 1960’s to provide a connection for northwest side workers to industrial and manufacturing jobs in the southeast portion of the city. Not only did the interchange create a barrier between the community and the riverfront business district and recreational facilities, over 100 homes were removed during construction, displacing hundreds of people.
60 years later, inefficient traffic flow caused by the outdated and aging interchange has created an opportunity for the City of Rockford to better configure the network to improve overall connectivity throughout the community. With recent acquisition of RCN Grant Program Funds, the City of Rockford is ready to move forward, repair, and reconnect.
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