The DuPage County Board has approved plans to link the Illinois Prairie Path to Metea Valley High School by paving a 500-foot gravel trail between the school and the path bridge crossing Eola Road.
“Yes, there is a path connection today, to the south, but it’s adjacent to the road,” board member Jim Zay, a member of the transportation committee, told the board last week. “Since we’re building a brand new path running north, it didn’t seem logical to not address that existing gravel path.”
Consultant TranSystems Corp., of Schaumburg, will be paid an additional $9,123 for the field surveys and other preliminary engineering work required for the extension.
In May 2016, the board signed off on a plan to create a connector trail linking the Prairie Path’s Batavia Spur and Aurora Branch. The path will run along Eola Road, crossing both Diehl Road and Interstate 88.
The move will resolve a problem that occurs when trains stop on the tracks where the path crosses. By rerouting the section of the Aurora Branch trail where it crosses tracks south of Eola Road, users will no longer have their walk, run or bike ride interrupted by train traffic.
Consultant TranSystems was hired to do preliminary engineering needed for the new route at a cost of $205,791.
Zay said upgrading the trail and linking it to the high school, attended by Naperville and Aurora students, is part of the county’s long-range transportation plan.
According to county documents, the improvement “will add connectivity and allow students a safe and efficient manner to access the Illinois Prairie Path for travel to and from school.”
The project calls for adding sidewalk curb ramps on the northeast, northwest and southeast corners of the intersection of Eola Road and Mustang Way. TransSystems also will evaluate environmental issues, identify any right-of-way or easements needed and evaluate alternatives at the north end of the project, where the path meets a Nicor access road.
A $1.24 million federal grant has been secured for the project and construction costs could be as much as $1.8 million, not including engineering or land acquisition, officials said.
Officials said construction should be completed in 2019.
Gary Gibula is a freelance reporter for the Naperville Sun.