Upcoming Votes To Determine Fate Of Illiana Expressway

(CBS) -- Do or die time is nearing for the Illiana Expressway. WBBM's Veronica Carter reports there are a couple of key votes coming up this month that will either set the project in motion or send it back to the drawing board.

A committee meeting Tuesday has been moved to a larger facility in Portage because a lot of people are expected to attend.

Jim Pinkerton with INDOT, the agency that's put the proposal together says a lot of work has gone into the idea.

"When you are talking about a project of this magnitude you want to go through and make sure you are considering everything that needs to be considered," said Pinkerton.

State Representative Rick Niemeyer of Lowell says it's a bad idea that benefits Illinois, but not Indiana.

"It was bad planning on Illinois and now they have a truck problem in that area that they want to develop more need a kind of escape route to get into I-65 into Indiana," said Niemeyer.

The expressway would link I-55 in Illinois with I-65 in Indiana. The vote before the full NIRPC board is next week.