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| Planning for bike path system gets the OK | |
| Nov 9, 2007 | |
| Greg Lukach | |
| Lisle Sun | |
| Pertains to East Branch DuPage River, Lisle | |
| Imagine combating global warming, jump-starting a healthy lifestyle and reducing local traffic congestion all while partaking in the same activity - commuting to the Metra station on Burlington Avenue from the south side of Lisle. Thanks to the resident-based Bike/Ped Committee, that option may be available within the next few years through a network of village-wide bike and pedestrian paths. The Village Board approved starting the project's planning stages on Nov. 5. "I was just delighted. They gave us everything we asked for," said Rob Bollendorf, co-founder of the task force and a 30-year Lisle resident. The board's approval provides for assistance from village staff, in the form of a liaison, and the Transportation Advisory Commission, in the form of a commission member serving on the task force. Bollendorf says the big picture is the production of an environmentally friendly, convenient and healthy way to either trek around to Lisle hot spots such as schools, downtown or the arboretum or link up with the paths of surrounding municipalities. The focus will be to fulfill transportation needs, with recreational needs secondary. "Lisle is behind other communities," he said. "All we need to do is get there, and then people can not only travel around Lisle, but to Woodridge." Getting to this point, however, will take some time, according to Village Planner Josh Potter, the appointed village liaison. Potter said it will be a challenge to plan for north-south paths in the vicinity of major east-west arteries such as Ogden Avenue but that DuPage County is helping out by providing a good framework to build from. Potter has been working with the county for a couple of years on the part of the extension of the East Branch DuPage River Greenway Trail that runs through Lisle, called the Benedictine Connector. The trail will run next to major routes such as College Road, Maple Avenue and Route 53 and beside hot spots such as Benedictine University and Community Park. The trail is expected to be completed in 2009, Potter said. After completion, the now-approved network of smaller paths can be created throughout the community. To help decide locations for those paths, the task force is looking to cull public opinion at a workshop within the next couple of months, according to Bollendorf. The bike path network would ideally have half-mile spacing between trails, said Ed Barsotti, executive director of the League of Illinois Bicyclists and an adviser to the task force. One example would be having north-south trails at Route 53, Schwartz Avenue and Yackley Avenue, he said. Besides planning the layout of the network, the task force will look into funding options. Ballendorf said the group plans to apply for grant money by next fall from the Illinois Department of Transportation's Safe Routes to Schools program. Potter said the village will look for additional grant money to fund the other trails. After the public workshop, there will still be rounds of revised budgets and plans and a lot of research to do, Potter said. He said it could be years before there's a tangible result. "These things take time," he said. |
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