Springfield’s upping its Route 66 game, adding new attractions and resurrecting an old one. A $623,000 grant from the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity is paying for it all.

Scott Dahl, director of the Springfield Convention and Visitors Bureau, says by the end of 2023, Mother Road travelers can enjoy a string of murals and a dozen informative wayside stations between Williamsville and Auburn.

One wayside station is already in place, at the Cozy Dog diner on South Sixth Street. Murals will be similar to one already in place at a railroad underpass where Peoria Road and Ninth Street meet.

Speaking of Peoria Road, the shuttered museum which was once Bill Shea’s gas station will be brought back to life. Dahl says Shea’s is probably the top Route 66 attraction people ask about.

Aldermen Tuesday will formally vote whether to accept the grant.