Tom Murtha, project manager with the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning (CMAP), updated the Village of Riverside Board of Trustees on a federally coordinated study of two BNSF railroad grade crossings that affect the villages of Riverside and Berwyn.

The study covers crossings at Delaplane Road and Harlem Avenue and seeks to "improve vehicle travel time reliability, safety, and mobility for motorists, emergency vehicles, pedestrians, and cyclists across the BNSF corridor," Murtha said. He told the board the process so far has produced a purpose-and-need statement and a transportation system performance report, and that consultants are now developing a range of alternatives and evaluation criteria to rank them.

Murtha said the project has two parts: an initial planning phase that identified needs and outreach steps, and a second phase to generate and evaluate alternatives. He warned the board that any option taken into engineering could require "tens of millions of dollars" for design and construction, and that the study is intended to establish clear go/no‑go decision points before committing to engineering.

CMAP consultants from Jacobs, Marie Glynn and Christine North, are helping with alternatives and evaluation. Murtha said the Cook County Department of Transportation and Highways has agreed to carry forward projects from this study through engineering and possibly construction if an alternative is selected.

The team has been conducting public outreach this month. Murtha said CMAP used the U.S. Postal Service Every Door Direct Mail program to reach about 5,000 addresses in Berwyn and Riverside, and reported roughly 1,800 website visits and about 500 survey responses as of the board meeting; the public survey closes at the end of the month. After outreach closes, project staff will work with a Community Advisory Group and the study group to interpret input, then evaluate alternatives and publish a shortlist for further comment. Murtha said the study aims to prepare a report for review by the Federal Highway Administration and the Illinois Department of Transportation.

Riverside trustees asked about outreach to Harlem Avenue business owners; Murtha said business owners were included in the direct mailing and he previously conducted door‑to‑door outreach at an earlier public meeting. He and village staff agreed that a follow-up outreach to businesses likely would be more useful after the project produces a shortlist of concrete alternatives.

Trustees did not vote on the study; Murtha requested public input and will return with further steps after the evaluation and short‑list process.