La Grange, IL:  The development of an air-cargo only airport in Will County—long discussed by state and local lawmakers—could create nearly 8,000 jobs over a multi-year construction period and boost regional economic activity by over $1.3 billion, according to a new study by the non-partisan Illinois Economic Policy Institute.  Release of the study comes after the Illinois General Assembly charged IDOT with establishing a prequalification process for vendors to participate in the development of the project.
 
Read the report: The South Suburban Airport: Exploring the Economic Impact of a Cargo-Only Chicagoland Airport 
 
In recent years, several legislative actions have advanced the SSA’s development. Notably, $162 million was allocated in the Rebuild Illinois program in 2019 for constructing an interchange at I-57 and Eagle Lake Road, a crucial access point to the SSA.  Additional legislative changes adopted in 2023 and 2024 require IDOT to establish a prequalification process for vendors participating in the airport’s development and a process for receiving unsolicited proposals under a public-private partnership.   
 
“Will County is already one of the largest transportation hubs in the United States.  And data reveals that the construction of the long-debated South Suburban Airport will deliver economic growth in the region, create jobs, and support the growing e-commerce industry,” said ILEPI Transportation Director and study author Mary Tyler. 
 
Recent legislation has shifted the focus of a potential SSA from passenger travel to a dedicated cargo airport to meet growing demand for these facilities across the Chicago metropolitan region. O’Hare International Airport and Chicago/Rockford International Airport already rank within the top 13 air-cargo airports nationwide.  As e-commerce exploded during the pandemic and Illinois warehousing and logistics industry has grown, O’Hare and Rockford have now experienced a cumulative cargo growth of 90% since 2010. 
 
“The new vision of the SSA as a cargo-focused airport would serve a strategic location in Will County along the I-57 logistics corridor, just south of I-80, near major rail lines, and only 45 miles east of the largest inland port in the United States,” added study co-author and ILEPI Economist Frank Manzo IV.  “This makes the airport ideal for serving integrator or express airlines like FedEx, UPS, DHL, and Amazon Air, as well as all-cargo airlines, to ultimately support the region’s fast growing e-commerce industry. 
 
For this study, ILEPI compiled data from the U.S. Census Bureau and analyzed two recent economic impact analyses completed prior to the SSA’s new cargo-focused vision.  ILEPI researchers used industry-standard IMPLAN economic modeling software to assess the economic and fiscal impacts of completing the $162 million interchange at I-57 and Eagle Lake Road, a $500 million development cost that has been consistently utilized for SSA airport construction, and the longer-term impacts of the airport’s operations post-completion. 

The analysis found operations of the SSA as a cargo-only airport would produce approximately 80 full-time jobs annually, increase annual economic activity by an additional $24 million in the region, and add $2 million in state and local tax revenues every year.   

“Our analysis indicates positive economic benefits from developing the SSA and a growing e-commerce and air cargo market in the Chicago region.  While more work is still to be done, the recent legislative actions show that the Illinois General Assembly is looking to leverage both public and private expertise to develop the new vision of the airport,” concluded Tyler. 

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The Illinois Economic Policy Institute (ILEPI) is a nonpartisan nonprofit research organization which uses advanced statistics and the latest forecasting models to promote thoughtful economic growth for businesses and working families in Illinois and across the Midwest.