Illinois Department of Transportation Safety Offices to Move South

The Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) announced recently that it will move its 148-worker traffic safety division to somewhere in southern Ilinois.

A state lawmaker says discussion about the decision to move the state’s traffic-safety division has been going on for two years.

Democratic State Senator Gary Forby of Benton says he was told six months ago that an announcement about the division would come this summer.

IDOT called the move a cost-cutting measure, saying the yearly square-footage cost of operating in Springfield is as much as its cost in Chicago. IDOT also says southern Illinois could benefit from the jobs.

The state plans to hold public hearings on the matter.