Glenview is seeking public input as it puts the finishing touches on an ambitious “Bike & Pedestrian and ADA transition plan” that includes everything from new bike and pedestrian amenities to how fast “e-bikes, e-skateboards, and electric scooters” can go.
“We really have prioritized community engagement as part of this plan,” said David Just, Community Engagement Manager with the village. “We are going through one more round of feedback to collect feedback on the specific plan. Residents are able to review it, let us know what they think of it, what still should be added or what changes they’d like to see.”
The Bicycle & Pedestrian Plan inventories the current bicycle and pedestrian facilities and conditions within the village while also recommending “new opportunities,” according to the village’s website. It says the ADA Transition Plan identifies existing programs, services, facilities, policies, and procedures that require changes, and outlines the steps necessary to become a more “accessible community.”
The village is inviting residents to submit comments about the draft plans to [email protected] through 5 p.m. March 10, and comments may also be dropped off to the Community Development Department at Village Hall at 2500 East Lake Avenue.
Just said the village has already gathered public input on the proposed plans at various village functions over the past year including at its Summer Fest Festival last summer.
“We had a big map where people could stick Post-it notes saying ‘we need bike paths here or we need bikes racks here or a cross walks here,'” he said. “People could literally pin on the map what they would like to see added.”
In addition, the village also sponsored a bike and walking tour around the village and collected feedback from residents during those events, said Just.
“One of the biggest comments we got is discussion about adding bike lanes and creating East to West connections in the village,” he explained. “That has been two of the bigger topics. Both are addressed in the plan. There’s a whole infrastructure network laid out, this is what it could look like down the road.”
The plan can be viewed online at: https://www.glenview.il.us/Pages/Bike-and-Pedestrian-Master-Plan.aspx
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. It is schedule to go to the Village Board for approval in March or April, Just said.He also said it includes information and recommendations in three main area including design guidance, a proposed network and proposed policies and programs, outlines a number of different bike and pedestrian amenities (like bike lanes, buffered bike lanes, shared use paths, marked shared lanes) and identifies locations throughout the village where each would be applicable.
The “infrastructure network” part of the plan identifies a potential bicycle network that includes shared use path/bike lanes along Glenview Road running all the way through town from East to West and also identifies other east-west connections. And under “policies and programs,” the plan inventories several new types of vehicles found on the roads today (e-bikes, e-skateboards, and electric scooters) and provides recommendations on the types of roads/lanes they can drive and how fast they can go, said Just.
He also said Glenview’s previous “Bicycle & Pedestrian Plan” was adopted in 2007.
“This is an update to that plan because a lot changes and the requirements change about what a bike lane should look like and what the design standards of a bike lane should be,” he explained. “Keeping it fresh and updating it with the latest information and the latest best practices is part of it too.”
Brian L. Cox is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.