Savoy moves one step closer to viaduct plan
SAVOY, Ill. (WCIA) — A decades-old decision is one step closer to having an outcome in Champaign County. Wednesday, the Savoy board of trustees approved an agreement — giving the village more than $860,000 in county funds.
Village officials want to use the money to convert the train crossing at Curtis Road and Dunlap Avenue into a viaduct so cars can pass under the tracks.
This idea has been a topic of conversation for a long time — but village officials say they never had the money to do it. The project would help with traffic flow for drivers in Savoy and southern Champaign and with response time in emergencies, which has been a problem for the village in recent years.
The village of Savoy has been wanting to make traveling in the area easier — without having to drive around the train tracks.
“There have been times when our fire trucks or police vehicles or ambulance had to respond to the east side and they’ve been held up by the train,” said John Brown, Savoy Village President.
Savoy Board to vote on Curtis Road project agreement with Champaign Co.
They’ve been working on securing money to build a way to go under it, building an underpass at the intersection of Curtis Road and Dunlap Avenue.
“We understand the infrastructure that that supports but we also have needs as residents here, safety needs and safety concerns as well,” said Daniel Maroun of Savoy.
The need for the viaduct was highlighted in 2021. When a train prolonged firefighters’ response time to a house fire off Dunlap Road, the house was destroyed.
“Our worst fear came to life for someone for a village resident for a friend for a community member as well,” said Maroun.
Brown added that it will “certainly enhance public safety.”
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Village officials say the approval for the $862,000 county dollars isn’t a green light for the overall project. It is one step closer to a broader grant agreement the board would have to vote on separately.
“Communities all come together to pick the goals they want to go for, and each community supports those goals, and we try to help each other out. So, this is a perfect example of that,” said Brown,
Other village trustees are concerned with potential inflation. Brown says if everything goes as planned. Construction can start as early as 2026 and be completed by 2028.
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