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| Eola interchange would force rerouting of bike trail | |
| Jul 13, 2008 | |
| Dan Campana | |
| Naperville Sun | |
| Pertains to IPP - Batavia Spur, Aurora, Naperville | |
| Ed Barsotti describes the Illinois Prairie Path's Batavia spur as a "nice, family-friendly section" of the trail. Hundreds of times Barsotti, director of the League of Illinois Bicyclists, has traveled the path between Warrenville and Batavia, a route which benefits from very little direct interaction with major roads because of strategically placed bridges and underpasses. It's those reasons that have had him concerned about constructing an Eola Road interchange on Interstate 88 on Aurora's far east side. "How those intersections are designed could make or break the path," he said. Last month, the Illinois Toll Highway Authority, DuPage County and Aurora confirmed a joint agreement to move ahead with the $50 million project to bring Eola Road access to Interstate 88. A preliminary configuration shows tollway drivers funneled to and from Eola Road via Bilter Road for westbound entry and exit, and Diehl Road for eastbound entry and exit. What's clear from a preliminary drawing of the ramp configuration is the need to reroute the Batavia spur of the Prairie Path. Detour during construction "There was never a time when we said 'let's eliminate the bike path.' That was never an option," said DuPage County Deputy Director of Transportation Morgan Cotten. During construction, the spur will be detoured north along Eola Road's west side, and then west on Bilter Road to cross the work zone and reconnect with the spur, officials explained. Once the new interchange is completed, the path will parallel the westbound exit ramp that meets with Bilter. At the intersection, the path heads west across the ramps, and runs along Bilter before reconnecting to the existing path in the Big Woods Forest Preserve, Cotten said. That would likely occur somewhere behind a subdivision on Wilton Lane. The Batavia spur currently crosses two lanes of Bilter just west of that neighborhood. "We looked at safety as the paramount criteria," Cotten added as to the process of selecting the best path reconfiguration. Cotten estimates between a half-mile and a mile will be rerouted to make way for the tollway. Bikers involved in process About five or six years ago, Barsotti assisted officials considering the idea of an Eola interchange. "I looked at how to minimize the impact (on the path)," he said. Hearing details of the plans for temporary and permanent changes, Barsotti considered the moves a step in the right direction - especially the idea of a traffic island that would help ease pathgoers' attempts to cross the ramps. "I think that sounds like a good idea," Barsotti said of the proposed reroutes. Most of all, he's glad the path won't have to contend with traffic at Bilter and Eola. Sun-Times News Group |
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