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Sun City residents press Huntley board for safety changes; $80,000 road-diet study approved
Summary
After testimony from Sun City residents about close calls and barriers to mobility, the Huntley Board approved a professional services agreement not to exceed $80,000 with Christopher B. Burke Engineering to study road diets and bike-lane connectivity in Sun City.
Sun City residents urged the Village of Huntley on June 22 to pursue traffic-calming measures and better bicycle and pedestrian connectivity, telling trustees that wide residential streets and a 35 mph limit create hazards for walkers, seniors and people with disabilities.
John Zeller, co-chair of Walkers and Bicyclists for a Safer Community and a Sun City resident, told the Board the study is important because Sun City is the only residential development in Huntley with those speed limits and where golf cart use is permitted; he and other residents asked the Village to focus the Road Diet and Bike Lane Connectivity Study on Sun City.
Director of Public Works and Engineering Timothy Farrell said the study will evaluate lane reductions or narrowed lane widths for roadways 36 feet or greater to accommodate shared bike lanes and to improve connections to the Village’s multi-use path network. The FY2023 budget includes funding for the study in the Streets & Bridges Fund, and staff recommended retaining Christopher B. Burke Engineering, LTD for up to $80,000 to prepare a technical memorandum, exhibits and proposed typical roadway sections.
Trustee discussion touched on whether the study should include areas outside Sun City; Farrell said the findings could be applied elsewhere but the evaluation would focus on Sun City given its unique conditions. Trustees approved the agreement 5-0-1.
The study’s immediate next steps include stakeholder meetings with Sun City residents and staff and development of the technical memorandum; staff said the study will also address how golf-cart use should interact with any proposed bike lanes.
