Glen Carbon says its Junction and Cougar drives project should begin after the nearby Illinois 159 turn-lane job wraps up, with utility relocations delaying the start. The grant-backed work includes a shared-use path, solar bollards, and resurfacing and reconstruction on both roads.
Glen Carbon's long-planned road work at Junction Drive and Cougar Drive is moving closer to construction, but the village says crews will not start until a nearby Illinois 159 project finishes.
Public Works Director Scott Slemer told trustees on June 9 that the contractor plans to begin the Junction and Cougar project after the Illinois 159 right-turn-lane work at Cottonwood Road wraps up. He said that nearby job is expected to take about five weeks.
The schedule for the Glen Carbon project has also been pushed back by utility relocations, according to village officials. Planning for the work began years ago, and the board approved engineering money in 2024.
What the project will do
The project covers Junction Drive and Cougar Drive and includes both roadway and pedestrian improvements.
Plans call for an 8-foot-wide shared-use path on the south side of Junction Drive and the west side of Cougar Drive. The path plan also includes solar-powered bollards.
Road work will include milling and overlaying Cougar Drive from Illini Drive to about 285 feet south. Junction Drive will be reconstructed from Cougar Drive to Troy Road, with milling and a new asphalt overlay.
Mayor Bob Marcus said the total project cost is about $900,000. He said $770,000 is secured through Surface Transportation Block Grant money and county grants.
Why the timing matters
The Illinois 159 turn-lane project has become the key sequencing issue for nearby work in Glen Carbon. Village officials are waiting for that job to finish before shifting crews and equipment to Junction and Cougar drives.
That makes the project dependent on two separate milestones: the completion of the nearby road work and the clearing of utility relocations tied to the village project itself.
A village column in March had already described the Cougar and Junction remediation project as one of Glen Carbon's 2026 road projects and said it was grant-funded. The June update adds a more specific trigger for construction, but not a firm start date.
What happens next
For now, the village is signaling that the project is funded, designed and queued up, but still waiting on outside work to finish first.
The next milestones are the end of the Illinois 159 turn-lane job and any remaining utility relocation work. After that, the contractor is expected to mobilize for Junction and Cougar drives.
Officials have not said how long the project will take once it begins.
Revision note
Initial automated publication.