Veterans Memorial Tollway opens for traffic

After years of waiting for many commuters in the southwest suburbs, the Veterans Memorial Tollway -- the former Interstate 355 -- officially opened to traffic as of 4 a.m. Monday.

The new 12.5-mile-long extension connects Interstate 80 to Interstate 55 and cost $730 million. It promises to cut travel times for many travelers heading into and out of the fast-growing southwest suburbs.

The new tollway, which was completed a month ahead of schedule, includes six interchanges and tolls will range from 50 cents to $1.25.

<iframe width="554" scrolling="no" height="508" frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" src="http://quikmaps.com/ext/46779?w=552&mh=483&t=1&ln=0&sn=1&zb=0&zs=0&d=1&it=0&icd=0&lat=41.6226288146378&lng=-87.98126220703125&zl=10&mt=0"></iframe>