Fleming Road Update

With 17 Natural Heritage Corridor Easements under our belt, I guess TLC is serious about helping to preserve the Fleming Road corridor!

After attending the County DOT's fourth Citizen's Advisory Group meeting for Fleming Road on March 3rd. I can summarize the comments from the Village of Bull Valley, Fleming Road Alliance, Environmental Defenders, Boone Creek Watershed Alliance & County Bicycle Advocates in three words:

"You're Not Listening!"

Two alternatives were presented to the group: one that would require the removal of about 120 trees, and another that would result in just 19 trees being taken down. The one that saves more trees would use retaining walls and curbs/gutters in spots to reduce the amount of grading they would do where there are hills adjacent to the road as in the picture.

The members of the CAG have been saying for nearly a year that they would like the County to consider an alternative that keeps the road in the same footprint as it is in today -- 2- 10 1/2 foot lanes and a one foot shoulder (of sorts) on either side of the pavement.

Folks agree that the road needs to be repaired, and that there are a small number of areas where water pools on the road. They just don't understand why $935,000 or so is being spent to study "how" to overhaul the road, when the residents have asked that it be kept much as it is today.

At one point the discussion turned to safety, and the need to make the road more safe. A representative from the County Sheriff's department commented that the incidence of accidents on the road is "amazingly low." One of the CAG members pointed out that a good way to predict the future is to look at the past -- in other words, perhaps Fleming Road has such a low accident rate for the simple reason that it is in the configuration that it is today.

In fact, studies show that wide, flat, straight roads are less safe than roads that are more narrow and have trees and the like nearer to the pavement.

So, if we place safety ahead of speed, then maybe the road agencies could start replicating the design of Fleming Road - windy, hilly, narrow roads with lots of large trees near the pavement?

12-step program for gasoholics?

Well, I don't suppose anyone is surprised that the media talking heads are predicting that gas prices could hit $4 or $5 a gallon by Memorial Day.

Prices have been rising steadily since the unrest started in Egypt a couple of weeks ago, and now that Libya has come un-hinged, the gas companies are not wasting a minute raising prices for the consumer. Come on, they went up 5-cents in the last 24 hours based on rumors that Ghadafi is going to blow up Libya's oil wells.

Even though Libya produces just 2% of the world's oil!

Now, I don't fault the local station owners - they have such a small margin to work with, and they don't call the shots. No, I believe the blame lies primarily with the corporate honchos who seem to book record profits each year, regardless of what happens -- oil surpluses, oil shortages, giant oil spills covering the Gulf.

But the average person really needs to take some responsiblity for the situation. After all, it is America's gas-guzzling lifestyle that makes us so economically vulnerable to the political drama in just a handful of countries and that makes it so easy for a half-dozen or so corporate CEOs to bring the world economy to its knees.

There is an answer. We need to kick the gas habit.

Time for a 12-step program for gasoholics:

- group your errands so you drive less

- shut the car engine off if you are going to be idling for 20 seconds or more - a car gets zero miles to the gallon when idling

- make sure your tires are properly inflated -- you can improve mileage by 15% that way

- drive smarter: go the speed limit, no jack-rabbit starts, no tail-gating or anything else that causes one to drive in a herky-jerky way (you get the picture)

- if you have to have a car, get one that's more fuel efficient than whatever you are driving now

- walk, carpool, take public transportation, use a bicycle -- anything that means turning over the ignition in one's car less frequently -- a lot less

- buy food that is grown locally - food transportation uses a large amount of gasoline, especially when the average item in the grocery store has travelled 3,000 miles to get to that shelf...

- replace the gas lawn mower with an electric or manual model

- go meatless one day a week, and be sure you buy your meat from a local farmer

- turn the thermostat down in winter and up in summer - at least 2 degrees

- pay the neighborhood kid $20 to shovel your driveway instead of starting the snow-blower (okay, the Feb 2 snow was a bit more than the kid could manage...)

.... that's 11 ideas. What do you suggest for number 12?

Road Madness

Promoting bicycle riding as an alternative to cars seems a good thing, right? The fewer cars we have on the roads, the less wear and tear on the roads, and the less need for widening them in the future.

There is a great informational video from the McHenry County Bicycle Advocates about the need to include bicycle lanes when planning to expand local road like Rakow Road!

If you have driven on Rakow, you know that it is a major east-west route in one of the most congested parts of the county, allowing people to drive from Randall Road to Route 31 as an alternative to Route 14.

Currently, Rakow can also be used for bicycle commuting because there is a sizable shoulder. However, plans to widen the road would mean that the shoulder would be eliminated, and bicycle commuting would be effectively eliminated as well.

The last reason I heard for this change was "cost." It costs more to include a bicycle lane, both in terms of design and pavement installation, because it means there is additional pavement to allow for both bicycles and cars to use the road safely.

Now, what if there were some highway funds that could be moved from a different project in the county and used for this one?

I know just the project: the proposed Alden Road widening project in Hartland and Alden Townships. The County Highway Department wants to add 8 foot shoulders the length of Alden Road because of safety concerns, and that will cost millions of dollars.

Alden Road does not have a lot of traffic - I've driven it several different times of day and days of the week recently just to see, and I can say that traffic is sparse. The impact of the widening would be huge, however. Landowners along the road have flagged trees and structures that would be affected by the increased shoulders -- it looks like at least 100 trees, a barn and portions of a couple of houses would be destroyed to add a wider shoulder to this rural road.

Alden Road also does not really provide an important travel alternative in this largely rural portion of the county, as Rakow does in a congested area. Nor does Alden Road make sense as a commuter bicycle route, as Rakow does... In terms of priorities, where would those road construction dollars best be spent?

So, here's a thought: why not reduce the speed limit on Alden Road to 45 miles per hour to improve safety, skip the expensive engineering and widening, and shift the Alden Road funds to the bicycle lane on Rakow Road? It would save lots of trees, a couple of houses and a barn, and would ensure that commuters can opt for riding their bicycles instead of driving their cars in a densely developed area of the county.

The MCBA website has more information, including a petition asking the county to include a bicycle lane on Rakow Road. Also, the Alden Road Alliance webiste has more information on the proposed Alden Road project.

Fight for the right to bike in Crytal Lake!

There is a petition circulating by a group called McHenry County Bicyle Advocates, seeking support for a campaign to ensure that bicycle lanes are provided along Rakow Road in Crystal Lake when that road is widened. Adding a multi-use trail along the side of the road may only increase project costs by 2-3%. Total project costs are estimated at $30 million.

With gas prices expected to go up again, and the economy expected to drag for a while longer, more people are choosing to use bicycles - and even their feet - for getting around. And Rakow Road shouldn't be a nice short-cut just for cars.

TLC member Eberhard Veit is President of MCBA, and he is putting a lot of energy into this campaign.

You can find more information at their website: http://www.mcbicycleadvocates.org/, and you can contact Eberhard by email at eberhard.veit@eisenmann.com to find out where you can sign a petition, or how you can get a blank petition to help collect signatures.