Miller and Randall Reopen With Right Turns Only After a Summer of Creek Work

The west leg of Miller Road at Randall Road was scheduled to reopen on Oct. 30, 2026, weather permitting, after being closed since early August. The reopening is limited. Both legs of Miller allow only right turns in and right turns out. Nobody can cross Randall, and nobody can turn left. The Northwest Herald reported that Hans Varga, spokesperson for the McHenry County Division of Transportation, confirmed those limits and said the two sides of the road sit at significantly different heights.

The summer closure was mostly about water. A tributary channel and an old box culvert ran under this corner, and they had to be moved before the road above them could be finished. The order of that work sets up the corner you'll drive through this winter.

A Pipe Running Corner to Corner

The county's project site, randallroad.info, spelled out the reason for the closure when it was announced in July. Crews had to divert the tributary channel and remove "the existing box culvert that crosses Randall Road diagonally at Miller Road."

The Northwest Herald's July 22 story covered the same work, saying the culvert would be removed before permanent paving went in. Its October follow-up said crews were diverting the creek from the east side of the road to the west side. The October article added that crews were also finishing intersection pavement that hadn't been completed last year.

That explains why the closure ran long. The July notice expected the west leg to stay closed for about 8 to 10 weeks starting the week of Aug. 3. An Oct. 30 reopening comes to roughly 12 weeks. Work below the pavement tends to set its own pace.

Once the culvert was out, the plan called for building the southbound pavement through the intersection and then laying permanent concrete on Miller. When the restricted reopening takes effect, the two sides of the road still won't be level, and the county gave that height difference as the reason crossing and left turns stay closed for now.

What Right Turns Only Means From Each Direction

The county described the setup as right-in, right-out at both legs of Miller. With Randall running north and south, that works out like this from each approach:

• Southbound on Randall: a right turn takes you onto the west leg of Miller.
• Northbound on Randall: a right turn takes you onto the east leg of Miller.
• Leaving the west leg of Miller: you can only turn right, which puts you southbound on Randall.
• Leaving the east leg of Miller: you can only turn right, which puts you northbound on Randall.

Everything else is closed: no left turns from Randall onto Miller, no left turns from Miller onto Randall, and no driving straight across from one side of Miller to the other. If your usual trip crosses Randall on Miller, the corner can't help you yet.

That affects two Village parks directly. The Village lists Ken Carpenter Park at Miller Road and Randall Road, with parking, a playground, a picnic area and sports facilities. Sunset Park is at 5200 Miller Road, with sports fields, a skate park, a splash pad and more. A trip to either one that used to cross straight over Randall now needs a different route.

Routes for the Turns That Are Still Off

The detour posted during the full closure is still the best map for the turns the restricted reopening doesn't restore. The October project update lists two routes:

1. Coming from the north on Randall: take Ackman Road west, then Lakewood Road south to Miller.
2. Coming from the south on Randall: take Algonquin Road west, then Lakewood Road north to Miller.

The second route matters most once the right turns come back. A southbound driver on Randall can turn right into the west leg again, but a northbound driver still can't turn left there. Algonquin Road to Lakewood Road is the county's suggested way around. The county also posted a detour map for anyone who wants to see the loop.

One more closure shaped the detour. The City of Crystal Lake closed Bradford Lane between Miller Road and Ashford Lane while the Miller detour was in place. If you've been using Bradford, check its status before you count on it again.

The Winter Work Stays Close to the Same Corner

This winter will look different from last. In 2025, the west leg of Miller closed for several months and then fully reopened for a holiday break in construction. The project site announced on Dec. 12, 2025, that the Miller detour had been lifted. No similar full reopening has been announced for this season. The detailed project schedule shows work continuing through December, January and February on Woods Creek Bridge, ground improvements and retaining walls, with no full winter shutdown.

Much of that work is close to this intersection. For the week of Oct. 26, the county listed these jobs:

• On the west leg of Miller, sidewalk and path construction, topsoil, traffic signals and street lighting.
• On Randall from Miller north to Village Road, sidewalks and topsoil along the parkway, with the old pavement coming out after southbound traffic shifts onto the new pavement.
• On the east half of Woods Creek Bridge, driving piles and forming piers.
• On the east side of Randall south of Miller, tree removal to make room for widening and a retaining wall.

Put together, that shows the county's sequence. The water moved first, then the southbound side took shape, and the east side comes next, with a bridge and retaining walls still to build.

Summer or Fall 2027, Depending on the Document

The widening covers Randall Road from McHenry Avenue in Crystal Lake to Acorn Lane and Polaris Drive in Lake in the Hills, and it will add a third lane. MCDOT's Randall Road Northern Segment page describes the 1.3-mile stretch from Ackman Road to Acorn Lane and Polaris Drive and gives the expected completion as summer 2027.

The detailed schedule posted on the project site gives a slightly longer timeline. It runs Stage 3 through summer 2027 and then puts Stage 4 in fall 2027, from September through November. That last stage covers final concrete, landscaping, permanent signals and pavement markings. Taken together, the two documents say the heavy construction should wrap up by summer 2027, with finishing work that could continue into the fall.

Neither the county's October update nor the Northwest Herald's report gives a date for restoring left turns and straight-across traffic at Miller. Until the county announces one, plan on right turns only at this corner. The weekly updates at randallroad.info are where changes are posted first, including whether the Oct. 30 reopening happened on schedule.

If you're thinking about buying or selling along the Randall corridor while all this is underway, the construction schedule is worth including in your timing. That covers which intersections are open, when showings are easiest to reach, and what the corner will look like when the work is done. Mary and Judy at Swanson Real Estate, Inc. are glad to go over how the Randall Road project affects a specific address in Lake in the Hills. Contact Us whenever you're ready to talk it through.