Elgin officials took another step last week toward completing the first of several long-awaited bike routes as part of a master plan of paths throughout the city.
In a 6 to 1 vote, the City Council approved spending $85,000 for engineering services — the last step before construction can begin next year on the first route identified in the plan, which will run through the northeast side of the city along parts of Kimball Street and Douglas and Congdon avenues.
The route is one of four identified as priority routes and will be an off-street path, said Tom Armstrong, member of the city’s Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee. The Bikeway Master Plan was created about four years ago, but construction has been slow going, said City Manager Sean Stegall.
Since the first phase of the northeast route was approved, some costs for the project have gone up, causing at least one council member concern.
“I see a little danger here,” said Councilman John Prigge, the lone member to vote down the funding last week. “In just over three years, our share has gone from $91,000 to $121,000. This is more of a want instead of a need in these times.”
Prigge was referring to the total cost to the city for all four phases of the project. Grant funding will cover the remaining costs for the project — expected to total more than $600,000 at the end of the final phase, according to city officials.
Despite little progress on the Bikeway plan, Armstrong said Elgin is a “very bicycle-friendly town,” referring to bike lanes on city streets and other aspects.
Still, Armstrong hopes for more progress.
“This is something that’s happening in communities all across the country,” he said. “We’re working on making it easier for people to bicycle around town. The more modes of transportation you can offer people, the more you can get people actually out of their car.”
The committee is also working with the League of Illinois Bicyclists on a bicycle route map for Elgin, expected to be available later this year, Armstrong said. Such a map is a growing trend among suburbs, and often shows how bike routes connect to Metra stations.
