Illinois Route 120 (IL 120) is a major east–west state highway in northeastern Illinois. It runs from U.S. Route 14 near Woodstock to Illinois Route 131 in Waukegan. It travels a distance of and is one of the few roads that provides direct access from McHenry County to Interstate 94 (Tri-State Tollway) in Lake County. Throughout its length, it shifts between two and four lanes as it passes through a setting that consists of open rural areas, as well as larger developments and heavy congestion. Although small capacity improvements have been made over time, a lengthy two lane section of road in the Grayslake vicinity has yet to see any major expansion. This key segment has been the subject of much delay and debate regarding the greater traffic flow across north-central Lake County. In October 2009, a special council approved a unified vision for an improvement plan for most of the Lake County portion of Illinois 120, which includes a long discussed bypass around downtown Grayslake. Route description McHenry County Beginning at its western terminus at a rural unsignalized intersection with U.S. Route 14 (Northwest Highway), IL 120 starts out as a two lane road just west of the city of Woodstock. This section is known as Washington Street as it heads in a southeast direction and enters the outer residential neighborhoods of Woodstock. In this area, the road curves due east, crosses the Metra Union Pacific/Northwest Line tracks near the station, then briefly heads north before turning once more to the northwest. Immediately after doing so, it passes a signalized intersection with IL 47 (Seminary Avenue/Eastwood Drive) before traveling north of the McHenry County Fairgrounds and then heading out of the Woodstock area and back into a prairie setting. The road then curves back to the north and then takes a right turn at an unsignalized intersection where it continues generally east for the remainder of its length. Before reaching the McHenry area a little more than four miles east, the road passes through two signalized intersections, some light forests, and some sparse residential developments. Now entering the busier city of McHenry, it takes on the name Elm Street and widens to four lanes west of Ringwood Road. Light commercial buildings with neighborhoods behind them line the roadway until the crossing of the McHenry Branch of the Union Pacific/Northwest Line near the McHenry Metra station. At the next intersection,