Buffalo Grove steps up focus on bike paths

Buffalo Grove's bike paths will get special attention from a new committee approved by the village board this week.

The Bicycle Path System Ad Hoc Committee, created at the suggestion of Trustee Steven Trilling, will consist of a minimum of seven appointed residents or village employees, with Village Planner Bob Pfeil serving as the staff liaison.

Trilling said the group will prepare a mission statement, review bicycle and walking trail programs in other communities and make recommendations for similar programs in Buffalo Grove.

It also will examine what resources are necessary to draft a comprehensive plan for the village's bicycle and pedestrian system.

“This is something that I felt very strongly about,” Trilling said. “We would like to be able to promote Buffalo Grove's bike paths. We would like to provide a safe environment. We would like to provide one that is educational to people.”

Buffalo Grove has 45 miles of bike paths and trails. The village is in the process of making improvements to Dundee Road that will include bike paths along that heavily traveled corridor.

Trustee DeAnn Glover suggested the paths be 10 feet in width, much as they are at Rylko Community Park, to give enough room to accommodate pedestrians, bikers and skaters.

Village President Elliott Hartstein called the bike paths one of Buffalo Grove's best kept secrets. He said riding down them, you will see parks you have never seen, as well as some beautifully landscaped backyards and wildlife. He added that the village makes available bike path maps.

The committee will provide a report to the village board within six months of its first meeting, officials said.