Interstate 72 in Illinois

Interstate 72
Central Illinois Expressway
Route information
Maintained by Illinois DOT
Length	182.56 mi (293.80 km)
NHS	Entire route
Major junctions
West end	US 36 / I-72 / Great River Road at Missouri state line
Major intersections	I-172 / Great River Road in Fall Creek US 54 near Griggsville US 67 in Jacksonville I-55 in Springfield US 36 / US 51 in Decatur, Illinois I-57 in Champaign
East end	Country Fair Drive in Champaign
Location
Country	United States
State	Illinois
Highway system
Interstate Highway System Main Auxiliary Suffixed Business Future Illinois State Highway System Interstate US State Tollways Scenic
← IL 71 → IL 72

In the U.S. state of Illinois, Interstate 72 (I-72) is an east–west Interstate Highway that runs from the Mark Twain Memorial Bridge over the Mississippi River with U.S. Route 36 east to the city limits of Champaign. This is a distance of 182.56 miles (293.80 km). The portion of I-72 and Interstate 172 (I-172) from Quincy to Springfield, Illinois is commonly referred to by its former name, the Central Illinois Expressway (CIE). In 2006, the Illinois General Assembly dedicated all of Interstate 72 as Purple Heart Memorial Highway. The stretch between Springfield and Decatur is also called Penny Severns Memorial Expressway and the section between Mile 35 and the Mississippi River is known as the Free Frank McWorter Historic Highway.

Route description

A section of I-72, north of Seymour, Illinois, facing west.

Near Valley City at mile marker 42 are the Valley City Eagle Bridges. These two individual two-lane spans bridge the Illinois River in rural west-central Illinois. Near mile marker 78, a sign marks 90 degrees longitude.

At its eastern terminus in Champaign, I-72 continues as Church Street (westbound) and University Avenue (eastbound), which stay as one-way streets for an additional 3 miles (4.8 km) into downtown Champaign.

History

Until the mid-1990s, I-72 ran from Springfield at Interstate 55 to Champaign at Interstate 57. On June 9, 1991, the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) approved the establishment of Interstate 172 from the western terminus of I-72 at Springfield to Fall Creek, 4 miles (6.4 km) east of Hannibal, Missouri, though it was contingent on Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) approval. The FHWA preferred to designate the route I-72.

After discussions regarding extending an Interstate-standard highway through the state of Missouri, on April 22, 1995, AASTHO approved another renumbering. I-172 was renumbered in its entirety as I-72. The U.S. 36 extension west of Fall Creek was also given the I-72 designation. The Illinois Route 336 expressway was renumbered to I-172 from Fall Creek to Fowler. Once the new Mark Twain Memorial Bridge was completed in September 2000, I-72 was extended to its current western terminus at U.S. Route 61 in Hannibal, Missouri.

Exit list

County	Location	Mile	#	Destinations	Notes
Pike			Mark Twain Memorial Bridge over Mississippi River (state line)
			1	IL 106 – Hull
			4	I-172 north / Great River Road north – Quincy	East end of GRR overlap; signed as exit 4A westbound; left exit
			10	IL 96 to IL 57 – Payson, Hull
			20	To IL 106 – Barry
			31	Pittsfield, New Salem
			35	US 54 / IL 107 – Pittsfield, Griggsville
Scott			46	IL 100 – Bluffs, Detroit
			52	IL 106 – Winchester
Morgan			60	I-72 BL east / US 67 – Alton, Beardstown, Jacksonville	Signed as exits 60A (south) and 60B (north)
			64	IL 267 – Alton, Jacksonville
			68	I-72 BL west to IL 104 – Jacksonville
			76	IL 123 – Ashland, Alexander
Sangamon			82	New Berlin
	Springfield		91	Wabash Avenue - Springfield, Loami
			93	IL 4 – Springfield, Chatham
			96	MacArthur Blvd - Springfield
			97A	I-55 south – St. Louis	West end of I-55 overlap
			97B	I-55 BL north (6th Street) – Springfield
			94	Stevenson Drive, East Lake Drive
			96	IL 29 (South Grand Avenue) – Taylorville	Signed as exits 96A (south) and 96B (north)
			98B	IL 97 west (Clear Lake Avenue)
			103B	I-55 north – Chicago	East end of I-55 overlap
			104	Camp Butler
			108	Riverton, Dawson	Dawson designation Eastbound only.
			114	Buffalo, Mechanicsburg, Dawson	Dawson designation Westbound only.
			122	Mt. Auburn, Illiopolis
Macon			128	Niantic
	Decatur		133A	US 36 east – Decatur	East end of US 36 overlap
			133B	US 51 south – Pana	West end of US 51 overlap
			138	IL 121 – Decatur, Lincoln
	Decatur		141A	US 51 Bus. south – Decatur
			141B	US 51 north – Bloomington	East end of US 51 overlap
			144	IL 48 – Oreana, Decatur
Piatt
			150	Argenta
			156	IL 48 – Cisco, Weldon
			164	Monticello
			166	IL 105 west – Monticello
			169	White Heath Road
			172	IL 10 – Clinton
Champaign			176	IL 47 – Mahomet
			182A	I-57 south – Memphis
			182B	I-57 north to I-74 – Chicago
	Champaign			University Avenue / Church Street	Continuation beyond I-57

Related routes

Interstate 72 Business
Location	Jacksonville
Length	9.5 mi (15.3 km)

Interstate 72 Business (abbreviated BL 72) is a Business Loop of I-72 in Jacksonville. It runs from the U.S. 36/I-72/U.S. 67 interchange southwest of Jacksonville north along the U.S. 67 bypass of Jacksonville to the former alignment of U.S. 36 (Morton Avenue). On Morton Avenue, BL 72 runs east through downtown Jacksonville until it reaches I-72 at exit 68. This is a distance of 9.5 miles (15.3 km).