Green Bay Road Bike Lanes Split Highland Park City Council, Residents

HIGHLAND PARK, IL — The question of whether to include painted bike lanes on Green Bay Road following a planned repaving project has divided Highland Park residents and councilmembers.

An informal vote Monday at a committee meeting of the lame-duck City Council resulted in a 4-3 vote in favor of including bike lanes. But two new councilmembers are set to take office next month, and final approval of plans for the Green Bay Road reconstruction project is not due until August 2024, according to city staff.

"Most major street projects in Highland Park just don't get this kind of attention, and I know part of it is the bike lane question," Mayor Nancy Rotering said. "But the other part of it has been the disaster that is Clavey Road."

The third phase of construction on Clavey Road began in April 2021 and is expected to be completed this summer. Staff said reconstruction of a 2-mile stretch of Green Bay Road would begin in the spring of 2025 and last for two seasons between Clavey Road and Central Avenue.

The city has received a federal grant for 80 percent of the cost of the Green Bay Road project, leaving the city to cover less than $3.9 million of the $15.6 million project. Before it can begin, the design will need approval from the Illinois Department of Transportation, which manages the grant money.

"Consideration of bike lanes has always been part of the purpose and scope," said David Block, project manager at engineering consultants Transystems, although city staff expect to receive the grant money whether or not bike lanes are included.

Green Bay Road is one of several streets listed as "bike routes" on the city's official bicycle and pedestrian map. The mixed-use trail that runs parallel to it is unpaved, making it unsuitable for safe, multi-season use for those who rely on bicycles for transportation, according to staff.

Currently, there are no on-street bike lanes anywhere in Highland Park, although St. Johns Avenue, Sheridan Road and several other streets have "sharrows" indicating they are shared lanes.

Residents have pushed back against any plan that would widen the road, which has effectively eliminated from consideration the possibility of adding bike lanes protected by bollards or curbs.

And more than 420 people have signed an online petition in opposition to widening Green Bay Road and "ANY form of bike lane."

So this week city staff and consultants presented a hybrid option: add a bike lane for the middle two-thirds of a mile of the project, then redirect cyclists on to Oakwood Avenue in the north and Broadview Avenue in the south.

Because those side avenues have an average of less than 2,000 cars a day — as opposed to the more than 10,000 cars a day who drive on Green Bay Road — IDOT regulations allow for city officials to declare them "bike routes" simply by adding signs, according to Block, the project manager.

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Councilmember Annette Lidawer, one of three members of the council who opposed bike lanes, said she was an avid cyclist but avoided riding on Green Bay Road in favor of the unpaved Robert McClory trail.

"Whenever I forget to take the path, I end up on Green Bay Road in fear for my life on my bicycle," Lidawer said. "There's nothing that would make me happier than having a bicycle lane."

Lidawer suggested that she would favor protected bike lanes if the road would be widened, while simultaneously expressing concerns that unprotected bike lanes would harm the residential character of the area, which it retains despite being a major artery for commercial traffic.

"We received a lot of letters from the city and from Evanston and from bicycle enthusiasts, and God bless them, but they don't live on Green Bay, and they don't live in Highland Park and they don't know our community," she said.

More serious cyclists would not heed the signs redirecting them to side streets where the bike lanes end, Lidawer said, while less serious cyclists will stick to the unpaved bike trail.

"I think this is a disaster from both a legal point of view and a safety point of view," Lidawer said.

Lidawer suggested the city issue fines to cyclists who continue to ride on Green Bay Road where there are no lanes.

"If we're going to do this, I'd want to fine the heck out of anybody, and I'd want somebody sitting there and policing it so people don't ride their bikes, because that's how worried I am about putting people on this street," she said.

"But you can't. Because it's allowed. It's legal now for them to ride," Rotering said.

"But I don't want to encourage that," Lidawer said.

"But you can't fine people if they're following the law," the mayor said, laughing, "Illinois allows people to ride their bikes on streets."

Councilmember Kim Stone said it does not matter if cyclists do not use the detour off Green Bay Road where the lanes end.

"There are cyclists already using Green Bay, with new pavement there will be more cyclists using this route," Stone said.

"A bike lane is an amenity that will benefit everyone," she said. "It improves connectivity, it may encourage people who would otherwise drive to bike instead, thereby reducing traffic on Green Bay Road."

Stone said that studies have shown bike lanes bring more foot traffic to businesses and improve safety for all road users, in addition to the climate change-related benefits associated with reduced greenhouse gas emissions.

"Research has shown that bike lanes increase the safety of not only cyclists but also pedestrians and drivers using the street," she said. "There are going to be people biking on Green Bay Road, they're there now. If we add a bike lane, it's going to make it safer for everybody."

A study cited by the Federal Highway Administration showed bicycle lanes can reduce total crashes by 30 percent on two-lane undivided local roads and 49 percent on four-lane roads.

Councilmember Andres Tapia, the second "no" vote set to remain on the council after next month, cast doubt on peer-reviewed studies and data from transportation experts about the safety effects of bike lanes.

Tapia suggested first repaving the road — without any bike lanes — and then collecting data on the number of accidents, near-misses and other safety issues.

"We're speculating that there may be less safety, but we don't know that yet," Tapia said.

He also suggested revisiting the idea of paving over the crushed limestone surface on the mixed-use trail, an option that was considered and rejected by the City Council in the past.

"Some people might not like it," he said. "But a lot of people don't like this."

Related: Lower Speed Limit On Green Bay Road Rejected By Highland Park City Council

Councilmember Adam Stolberg said he opposed the project from a standpoint of public safety.

"That bike lane is what, 5 feet wide? I'm about almost 3 feet wide, and it's not because I'm fat," Stolberg said.

"And I can't imagine doing the simple math of where, heading northbound, my right shoulder is going to be proximate to an ambulance, let alone daily traffic," he continued. "I don't think just from my real-life experience that when there is a bike in that lane that traffic is going to slow down. I don't believe it's going to slow traffic down, I think the opposite is going to happen."

Stolberg said he had personally measured the road with his young son and family SUV and determined it would not be safe enough for his child to ride alongside it in an unprotected bike lane — the only type under consideration due to opposition to road widening.

"As a parent, I can't imagine putting a child in that bike lane without some type of real barrier," he said.

But Stolberg is unlikely to have a vote on the plan. According to unofficial results from last week's election, he trails local architect Yumi Ross by 69 votes.

Councilmember Tony Blumberg, who secured re-election last week, said he disagreed with Stolberg's method of analysis and relied on data and expertise instead of anecdotes, speculation or conjecture.

"I understand a lot of people don't like this. That's a risk with every project that comes in front of us," Blumberg said.

He pointed out cycling would continue to be legal on Green Bay Road, and although there is a danger any time cars and bicycles share the road, it will be safer if lanes delineate where cyclists are supposed to ride, a conclusion shared by City Engineer Manny Gomez and City Manager Ghida Neukirch.

"They're not going to suddenly become less safe," Blumberg said. "That's a fact."

Outgoing Councilmember Michelle Holleman said it was important that the bike lane be integrated with other trails and paths rather than a "road to nowhere."

She encouraged city officials to "do something that makes sense, be a little more aggressive about what needs to be done to make it make sense, and do it for the generation that is growing up, that lived through the pandemic that could not find enough bicycles in the world, and do something that will help that generation use bikes."

Holleman pointed to the proliferation of electric bicycles and said Highland Park residents talk a lot about reducing emissions and pursuing environmentally friendly policies, but none of it will happen unless the city makes it possible.

"We can think of a million reasons why we shouldn't put a bike lane in," she said. "But if we have the opportunity in 20 years, we will look back and wonder what we were thinking in not planning for the future of infrastructure."