Lombard seeks resident opinions on bike and pedestrian plan
Lombard residents interested in getting around the village without a car are encouraged to attend an open house Wednesday to share their input for the first villagewide bicycle and pedestrian plan.
The open house will run from 7 to 9 p.m. at village hall, 255 E. Wilson Ave. Residents are welcome to stop in at any time.
Alta Planning + Design is being paid about $64,000 to evaluate current bicycle and pedestrian accommodations in Lombard, gather input from the public and develop a comprehensive set of goals and objectives that could result in improvements.
Carl Goldsmith, director of public works, said two attempts to gather information from residents at Cruise Nights were rained out, so he is hoping people will attend Wednesday's open house.
"The more input we get, the better this plan will serve the community," he said.
That includes information about residents' top destinations and details about "barriers" residents find when walking and bicycling.
The village already has collected feedback from about 100 people through an interactive map and an online survey on the village's website. Both will be open to comments for at least another month, Goldsmith said.
The next opportunity to discuss the plan in person with village staff and Alta will be at the beginning of August, during National Night Out at Lombard Commons Park.
Village officials say the plan will build upon the 2008 Lilac Bikeway Plan. The hope is to identify locations for new bicycle facilities, such as bike lanes, and determine policies and programs that could encourage increased biking and walking trips. The plan also will help with state and federal transportation grant applications.
A bike tour to showcase the proposed recommendations is scheduled for late September. For updates, visit the village's "Biking in Lombard" webpage.