Berwyn begins multi‑year ADA transition planning for sidewalks, ramps and bus stops

City of Berwyn officials opened a public presentation on a draft Americans with Disabilities Act transition plan for sidewalks, curb ramps, crosswalks, bus stops and pedestrian signals, telling the City Council the work will be long term and driven by community input. Nicole Campbell, senior engineer for the city, introduced the project and asked council members to help publicize a forthcoming public comment period.

The plan was prepared with technical assistance from the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning (CMAP) and consulting firm Oates Associates. Victoria Barrett, project manager at CMAP, said the plan is intended as “a long term plan for progress” and stressed that bringing the public right‑of‑way into federal compliance will take years. Barrett added that CMAP’s Accessible Communities Program was created because “only 11% of communities in our region were compliant” when the program began.

Travis Helmcamp of Oates Associates described the current draft as the start of public engagement, not a final product: “this plan is not complete today. The plan's not gonna be complete till we get the feedback from the public,” he said, and encouraged council members to share an interactive map and comment tools with residents. He said the consultants will inventory sidewalks using lidar and field checks, identify barriers to accessibility, and recommend engineering solutions that meet Federal Highway Administration standards so the city remains eligible for federal funding.

Why it matters: an ADA transition plan gives the city an organized inventory and prioritization method to justify projects to funders and to guide multi‑year improvements. Helmcamp said the plan is a tool intended to support future grant work and long‑range budgeting rather than a promise to fix every barrier at once.

Key details from the presentation: the draft inventory covers roughly 163 miles of sidewalk, about 3,100 curb ramps, roughly 40 pedestrian traffic signal locations, three train stations and an estimated 20–30 bus stops; consultants recommended an “activity score” that combines physical condition with proximity to community assets (schools, parks, transit, hospitals and commercial strips) to prioritize work. Helmcamp said common low‑cost fixes — for example, five sidewalk panels at a bus stop to create an accessible boarding area — can make bus stops usable for residents who use mobility devices, while other problems such as steep driveway cross‑slopes may require easements and higher costs.

Council members and residents asked whether the lidar and map data would be public; Helmcamp said the city will own the final data set and CMAP plans to host a region‑wide map of participating communities’ work. The plan will include a 30‑day public comment period after the draft is finalized and a public open house scheduled for Sept. 25 from 6–8 p.m. at the YMCA, the consultants said.

The consultants noted tradeoffs and limitations: the plan focuses on bringing the existing pedestrian network into compliance rather than redesigning roadways or proposing immediate major roadway changes such as grade separations. They cautioned that some green‑infrastructure pavement types (pervious concrete/asphalt) have surface characteristics that can make travel difficult for users of small wheelchair casters and urged involving disability‑community stakeholders when testing such materials.

Next steps: consultants will finalize the draft after further community input, open a 30‑day formal comment period, and deliver the inventory and prioritization tools to city staff. Campbell and Oates said the city will then use the plan as a basis for applying for federal and county transportation and safety funds. No formal council action was taken on the plan at the meeting; council members were asked to help promote the public engagement and to coordinate internally on who will monitor implementation.

Ending: The presentation closed with a request that residents add comments through the CMAP interactive map, email the project team, or attend the Sept. 25 public meeting; the consultants reiterated they will return to the council after community input is incorporated.