What Illinois Drivers Need to Know About Road Diets

If you’ve ever driven down a road and thought, “Wait…didn’t this used to have more lanes?” Congratulations, you likely just experienced a “road diet" that is quickly gaining popularity throughout Illinois.

What is a Road Diet?

Most people don't have warm, rosy thoughts when they hear the word "diet", and hearing it combined with the word "road" is definitely not something I had on my 2026 Bingo card, but here we are.

The Federal Highway Administration defines a "road diet" as a roadway reconfiguration that "can improve safety, calm traffic, provide better mobility and access for all road users, and enhance overall quality of life."

The purpose of most diets is to get skinnier, right? Well, that is exactly what is happening to two major streets in Rockford right now.

"Road Diets" in Rockford

2026 will be one of the biggest construction seasons yet for Rockford, specifically for Auburn and 11th Streets.

Let's start with the Auburn project first.

I drive on Auburn twice a day, five days a week coming to and from work, and this week my typical commute became far more frustrating now that it has been reduced to one lane in each direction. Here's a breakdown of the 3-phase Auburn Street reconstruction project from the City of Rockford:

According to mystateline.com, the 11th Street reconstruction project will include:

a road diet from Harrison Avenue to Charles Street. The project will rebuild pavement, replace water mains, add sidewalks and construct a multi‑use path. It also realigns Lincoln Middle School’s entrance to create a safer four‑leg intersection.

Now, I'm all about making Rockford roads safer for all that use them, from drivers, to bikers and walkers, BUT reducing lanes on two highly-traveled and already chaotic streets doesn't make much sense to me. What do YOU think?