South end: US 6 in Rockdale Length 45.16 km | North end: IL 43 in Worth Constructed 5 November 1918 | |
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Existed: November 5, 1918 – present Major cities Joliet, Lockport, Orland Park Counties Will County, Illinois, Cook County, Illinois | ||
Illinois Route 7 is a northeast–southwest state road in northeastern Illinois. Currently, Illinois 7 runs from U.S. Route 6 at Rockdale north through Joliet, and Crest Hill into Lockport, and then east to Orland Park before terminating at Illinois Route 43 in Worth. Illinois 7 runs for about 28.06 miles (45.16 km).
Contents
Map of IL-7, Illinois, USA
Route description
Illinois 7 follows large portions of the Southwest Highway, one of the original routes from Chicago to Joliet.
Illinois 7 runs along many major streets and overlaps several other routes. It joins with Illinois Route 53 in Crest Hill, Rt.30 (Plainfield Road in Crest Hill and with U.S. 6 at 159th Street between Lockport and Orland Park. Between Rockdale and Worth, Illinois 7 runs along old U.S. Route 66, 159th Street, 143rd Street, Wolf Road, Southwest Highway, and Larkin Avenue, among many others.
History
SBI Route 7 originally ran from East Moline to Chicago, mostly on current U.S. 6 and Illinois 7. When U.S. 6 was designated, Illinois 7 was dropped west of what is now Orland Park. In 1967, it was dropped in the city limits of Chicago (terminating in Oak Lawn, and also extended to Illinois Route 53 in Lockport. Two years later, it was extended to Rockdale. In 1970, the eastern end was cut back to its current terminus.