Section of Lawrence to be closed for pedestrian bridge installation July 8 and 9 in Robinson Woods as part of Des Plaines River Trail improvements
by CYRYL JAKUBOWSKI
A pedestrian bridge will be installed over Lawrence Avenue in Robinson Woods South on July 8 and 9 as part of work on the renovation of the Des Plaines River Trail.
“We have work going on there as part of a series of repairs and upgrades to the Des Plaines River Trail. There will be a new bridge over Lawrence Avenue, replacing the existing tunnel for the trail under Lawrence,” said Forest Preserves of Cook County spokesman Carl Vogel.
“The erection of the bridge is scheduled for the weekend of July 8 and 9th. When the bridge goes in, IDOT will be closing Lawrence Ave. to through traffic and providing a construction detour,” Vogel said. Signs announcing the closure have been posted near East River Road and Cumberland Avenue. The bridge will be located west of East River Road.
The $7.9 million work is part of a 1.2-mile segment of the trail between Bryn Mawr Avenue in Chicago and Lawrence in Norridge.
Work will upgrade the unpaved trail surface and add about 1,000 feet of boardwalk near the Des Plaines River that frequently floods to raise the path above the 100-year river flood elevation, according to the forest preserve district.
Currently, the trail goes under Lawrence via an underpass. The anticipated completion is September of this year, the district said.
This project follows the 2021 construction of a 12-foot-wide pedestrian bridge over the river at Bryn Mawr Avenue that connected Rosemont’s entertainment district to the trail.
Work on the trail is also underway on a segment from Devon to Bryn Mawr in Rosemont, and on a Touhy to Devon segment in Park Ridge.
Work is also planned on a segment of Lawrence to Irving Park Road to relocate the trail away from the river and out of the floodplain, according to the district.
