Elgin committee raises money for citywide bike map

Elgin bicyclists hope the final event of the city’s Bike to Work Week schedule will raise enough money to design and distribute a bike map by fall.

The Ride for Life, a 15-, 25- or 60-mile ride, starts and ends Sunday at Village Pedaler, 1954 Gyorr Ave., South Elgin. If proceeds reach $7,000, the Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee will have enough to commission the map.

“Fifty percent of bicyclists would like to ride around town but don’t know how to go about doing it,” said Tom Armstrong, a member of the committee. “That’s what this map is being created for.”

The committee already got a $7,000 grant from the City of Elgin and needs to match that to cover research, design and distribution costs. The “ease of use” bike map will identify streets that are comfortable for bicyclists as well as popular destinations in the city.

Bicycle rules of the road and safety tips will go on the back of the map with information about how to cross busy intersections and ride on packed streets.

Armstrong said the goal is to lay out a network that puts all residents within a 4-minute bike ride from a street or trail in the system. The committee will hold public meetings to get input from residents about the preferred routes through their neighborhoods once the project moves forward.

Then the plan is to distribute 30,000 free maps — by this fall, if possible.

Registration for the Ride for Life runs from 6 to 10 a.m. Sunday at Village Pedaler. Pizza and other treats will be waiting for riders at the finish line, which all participants must cross by 3:30 p.m.

Other highlights wrapping up Bike to Work Week include a BMX trick demonstration by X Games medalist Matt Wilhelm at 6:45 p.m. Friday in the old Gail Borden Library parking lot, a bike donation drive from 9 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Saturday at The Centre and a Tour de’ Museums self-guided ride from 1 to 4 p.m. Saturday with a recommended start at the Elgin Area Historical Society Museum.

For details about Bike to Work Week events visit cityofelgin.org/bikes.