Navy Pier Flyover project to begin phase two construction this week

City of Chicago

Chicago’s seemingly never ending Navy Pier Flyover construction project is ready to began phase two to extend a dedicated jogging and biking trail south over the Odgen Slip and DuSable Park. Under construction since March of 2014, the elevated pathway was designed to reduce crossing conflicts between lakefront trail users and automobiles going to and from Chicago’s Navy Pier and Lake Shore Drive.

According to 42nd Ward Alderman Brendan Reilly’s weekly newsletter, nearby residents can expect to see additional construction fencing and temporary traffic control signage starting tomorrow. The flyover’s upcoming extension over DuSable Park also coincides with a renewed clean-up effort to rid the undeveloped 3.3-acre peninsula of radioactive soil left over from Chicago’s old Lindsay Light and Chemical Company.

The third and final phase of the project will replace perhaps the single most treacherous stretch of the Lakefront Trail with a dedicated path above the Chicago River. Currently, joggers and cyclists must cross the waterway along the sidewalk of Lower Lake Shore Drive. On top of being being heavily congested by both trail users and tourists, this stretch also features several blind corners.

Though anticipated to be complete in 2018, the Navy Pier flyover project has progressed at a proverbial snail’s pace. In fact, the pathway has taken longer to complete than San Francisco’s Golden Gate Bridge, observed John Greenfield of The Chicago Reader earlier this year.

• Construction slowing progressing on Navy Pier Flyover project [Curbed Chicago]
• The New Navy Pier Flyover is Just Starting to Take Shape [Curbed Chicago]
• Navy Pier Flyover Recreation Trail To Begin Construction Soon [Curbed Chicago]
• Navy Pier Flyover [Official website]