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Trip from Sterling, IL to Franklin Corners, IL

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Compiled and reviewed by the US Trip Planner planning team at COD Solutions Oy · Last reviewed Sep 5, 2026 · Editorial standards

Drive Time

28m

Distance

18.7 mi

30 km

Drive Score

6/10

Good drive

Same Day?

Yes, doable

Fuel Cost

$3

one way

EV Charging

Unknown

Best Time to Leave

Save up to 7 min
4 AM
0h 26m ★
6 AM
0h 29m
8 AM
0h 33m
10 AM
0h 30m
12 PM
0h 30m
3 PM
0h 31m
5 PM
0h 33m
8 PM
0h 27m

Estimated drive times based on typical traffic patterns. Actual times may vary with weather, construction, and real-time conditions.

Best Time
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city in Whiteside County, Illinois, United States

Sterling, IL

Wikimedia Commons

Downtown Franklin Corners, IL, IL

Franklin Corners, IL

Phil Evenden

Trip Overview

Sterling, IL to Franklin Corners, IL is 18.7 miles and takes about 28m via Pilgrim Road, Hickory Hills Road, and Locust Street, with a fuel budget near $3 and enough daylight to finish in a day. This short trip stays within Illinois, connecting two points in the Midwest region. It's a straightforward drive that's ideal for a quick local excursion or a brief leg of a larger road trip. Given its minimal duration and distance, it offers flexibility for when you choose to depart and how you manage any stops along the way.

Main Roads

Road Distance Duration
Pilgrim Road 9 mi 12m
Hickory Hills Road 5.8 mi 8m
Locust Street 2.4 mi 3m
Lyndon Road 0.8 mi 1m
East Grove Street 0.5 mi 1m
1st Avenue 0.1 mi <1m
East 3rd Street <0.1 mi <1m
East 5th Street <0.1 mi <1m
Longest stretch: Pilgrim Road — 9 mi, about 12m

Turn-by-Turn Driving Directions

Step-by-step road directions between Sterling, IL and Franklin Corners, IL.

1

Start on IL 40

262 ft · 10 sec · Locust Street
2

Turn left onto IL 2

414 ft · 14 sec · East 3rd Street
3

Turn left onto IL 40

0.1 mi · 21 sec · 1st Avenue
4

Turn left onto IL 40

414 ft · 11 sec · East 5th Street
5

Turn right onto IL 40

2.3 mi · 3 min · Locust Street
6

Enter roundabout onto IL 40

127 ft · 1 sec · Hickory Hills Road
7

Continue on IL 40

5.8 mi · 8 min · Hickory Hills Road
8

Continue on IL 40

1.9 mi · 2 min · Pilgrim Road
9

Continue on Pilgrim Road

1.7 mi · 2 min · Pilgrim Road
10

Continue on East Grove Street

0.5 mi · 1 min · East Grove Street
11

Continue on Pilgrim Road

5.3 mi · 7 min · Pilgrim Road
12

At end of road, turn right onto Lyndon Road

0.8 mi · 1 min · Lyndon Road
13

Turn left onto Covell Road

231 ft · 10 sec · Covell Road
14

Arrive at destination

Covell Road

Heads-up: tricky spots

5 of 7

5 decision points cluster between mile 0 and 17.9 — GPS handles the exact turns, but know they're coming. Your lane choice matters more than the turn itself.

4
0 mi into trip | ~0m in | IL 2 / East 3rd Street

Turn left onto IL 2 / East 3rd Street

Navigation decision point

5
0.1 mi into trip | ~0m in | IL 40 / 1st Avenue

Turn left onto IL 40 / 1st Avenue

Navigation decision point

4
0.3 mi into trip | ~0m in | IL 40 / East 5th Street

Turn left onto IL 40 / East 5th Street

Navigation decision point

4
0.3 mi into trip | ~0m in | IL 40 / Locust Street

Turn right onto IL 40 / Locust Street

Navigation decision point

5
17.9 mi into trip | ~26m in | Lyndon Road

At end of road, turn right onto Lyndon Road

Navigation decision point

Fuel & Cost

Regular Gas

$2.90 one way

$5.80 round trip

$3.94/gal 25.4 MPG avg 7 kg CO2
Fuel Type $/gal One Way Round Trip
midgrade $4.32 $3.18 $6.36
premium $4.93 $3.63 $7.26
diesel $5.60 $4.12 $8.24

No toll roads detected on this route.

Drive Cost (one way)

Fuel

$3

Estimated CO2 emission: 6.5 kg one way. Prices: EIA weekly data, 2026-08-31.

Driving Electric?

About $2 in charging · 0 stops · 71% less CO2

Vehicle Type kWh Stops DC Fast Home Charge
Average EV 5.6 0 $1.96 $0.90
Efficient EV 4.7 0 $1.64 $0.75
EV Truck/SUV 7.5 0 $2.62 $1.20

Gas CO2

7 kg

EV CO2

2 kg (71% less)

This trip is well within single-charge range for most EVs. No charging stops needed if you start fully charged.

DC fast charging avg $0.35/kWh. Home charging avg $0.16/kWh. US grid CO2: 0.39 kg/kWh.

Travel Intel

Current conditions at both ends of the drive.

Forecast as of Aug 12, 2026

Origin

Sterling, IL

Evening in Sterling on Friday

Local time

7:46 PM

CDT

Current temp

83°F

Chance Showers And Thunderstorms

SW 5 mph 34% chance Live forecast

Severe Thunderstorm Warning

Severe Thunderstorm Warning issued August 12 at 3:58PM CDT until August 12 at 4:45PM CDT by NWS St Louis MO

Flood Warning

Flood Warning issued August 12 at 2:48PM CDT until August 13 at 7:00PM CDT by NWS Chicago IL

Destination

Franklin Corners, IL

Evening in Franklin Corners on Friday

Local time

7:46 PM

CDT

Current temp

82°F

Slight Chance Showers And Thunderstorms

N 5 mph 16% chance Live forecast

Severe Thunderstorm Warning

Severe Thunderstorm Warning issued August 12 at 3:58PM CDT until August 12 at 4:45PM CDT by NWS St Louis MO

Flood Warning

Flood Warning issued August 12 at 2:48PM CDT until August 13 at 7:00PM CDT by NWS Chicago IL

Time zone

Same local time

Origin and destination are on the same clock, so arrival timing is easier to judge at a glance.

Temperature spread

1 degrees cooler at arrival

A meaningful temperature swing is a good cue to rethink layers, water, and how soon you want to arrive.

Road read

28m on the road

The weather snapshot is not static. If you are leaving later, give both cities one more quick forecast check before departure.

Weather data from the National Weather Service. Conditions may change; check closer to your travel date.

What kind of drive is this?

This drive is entirely on surface roads, meaning you won't encounter any highway driving. The longest continuous stretch you'll experience is 9 miles on Pilgrim Road. You'll navigate through local streets and roads, so expect to encounter typical surface road conditions like intersections and varying speed limits. The total travel time is estimated at 28 minutes.

Only 0% highway — the rest is turn-by-turn surface driving.
14 navigation steps total — most of the decisions cluster near the start and finish.
Longest single stretch: 9 mi on Pilgrim Road.

How Hard Is This Drive?

3/10

Expect a hands-on drive with frequent turns and local roads rather than long highway stretches. There are only a few real navigation decisions along the way. The trickiest moment comes early in the drive near IL 2 / East 3rd Street.

Driving Effort 3/10

Easy - simple navigation with a manageable amount of wheel time

Balances navigation complexity with total wheel time.

This is a straightforward 28m drive. You will face about 7 decision points, but nothing that requires special attention if you follow navigation.

Where does it get tricky?

The main spots that need attention: near the start (IL 2 / East 3rd Street): Navigation decision point; at 0.1 miles (IL 40 / 1st Avenue): Navigation decision point; at 0.3 miles (IL 40 / East 5th Street): Navigation decision point.

Elevation Profile

Mostly flat terrain

836 ft 658 ft

Total Climb

330 ft

Total Descent

206 ft

Highest Point

836 ft

~12 mi in

Elevation Range

178 ft

About the Cities

Starting in Sterling, IL

Full guide →

Founded 1838

Sterling and Rock Falls are adjacent towns in Northern Illinois.

City content from Wikivoyage (CC BY-SA 4.0) and Wikidata (CC0).

Who Is This Route For?

Weekend Trip

Doable as a same-day drive at 28m. Total distance: 18.7 miles.

Family Friendly

Moderate complexity with 0 natural rest stops along the way.

Solo Traveler

28m drive, comfortable solo distance.

EV Driver

0 DC fast chargers along the route. Coverage: unknown.

First-Time Driver

Mostly highway driving (0%). Straightforward navigation.

Scenic Drive

Mostly surface roads route profile.

Frequently Asked Questions

The longest stretch is about 9 miles on Pilgrim Road. The full list of main roads is in the Roads section above.

Yes. At under 2 hours behind the wheel, this works well for families — plan one quick stop if you have younger kids.

The main spots that need attention: near the start (IL 2 / East 3rd Street): Navigation decision point; at 0.1 miles (IL 40 / 1st Avenue): Navigation decision point; at 0.3 miles (IL 40 / East 5th Street): Navigation decision point.

Yes. A round trip is manageable in a single day if you plan a break at Franklin Corners, IL before heading back.

How this page is built

Compiled by the US Trip Planner planning team at COD Solutions Oy from open government datasets — OSRM over OpenStreetMap for geometry, EIA for fuel prices, and USGS 3DEP for elevation. See our methodology for refresh cadence and limitations.

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