Daily Herald
September 6, 2005
Jan Carlson
Jan Carlson is chairman of the Transportation Committee of the
Kane County Board.
Kane County is a great place to live, work and raise a family. We enjoy excellent schools, tightknit neighborhoods, beautiful parks and charming downtowns. It is where I was raised, where I met my wife of 36 years and where we chose to raise our three children.
So I very much appreciate when my neighbors raise concerns about the tremendous growth taking place in our county. None of us wants to endure the gridlock and congestion that often comes with increased population &emdash; none of us wants to see our quality of life change.
At the same time, we cannot afford to bury our heads in the sand and adopt a policy of "if we don't build it, they won't come." The inescapable reality is that new residents are coming to Kane County &emdash; rapidly. By planning for that growth today, by investing in roads, bridges and other transportation initiatives to alleviate traffic, we can defend the Kane County we know and avoid as best we can the growing pains that plague other Chicago-area communities.
That is why I support the Illinois Department of Transportation in its study of a regional north-south roadway in Kane and Kendall counties connecting Interstate 80 and Interstate 88. Better known as the "Prairie Parkway," it would relieve traffic congestion throughout the Fox Valley and provide a vital corridor to more efficiently move people from place to place.
Just as important, the parkway would serve as an economic engine for the region, and ultimately keep our residents in good jobs.
In examining the need for such a roadway, IDOT studied portions of six area counties that would be served by the parkway &emdash; including Kane and Kendall. The study found that 85 percent of the streets and roads in the six-county region are only two lanes. And between I-80 and I-88, no north-south multilane roads exist from Route 59 to I-39 &emdash; a distance of nearly 50 miles.
As a result, local roads already are overburdened. Those of us who travel on Randall Road, Route 47 and other major corridors do not need studies to know our roadways already are at or near capacity &emdash; we see it daily.
That gridlock will only become more intense in coming years, as Kane County is expected to grow from just more than 472,000 residents today to around 700,000 by 2030. New residents also are expected to continue to pour into Kendall County, which today is the second-fastest growing county in the nation.
Those new residents will bring more traffic. In fact, IDOT estimates a 76 percent increase in the number of vehicle trips in the six-county study area.
By acting today, we can position ourselves to accommodate those trips and avoid traffic gridlock &emdash; but there is a limited window of opportunity.
Our area was fortunate to have its congressman, Dennis Hastert, secure $209 million in the recent federal transportation bill to move this project forward. Those dollars will allow IDOT to continue its study of the parkway &emdash; and I encourage all residents to take part in that process through public hearings and other informational sessions.
Through our participation, we can limit access points to the road, which will protect nearby communities and avoid the "sprawl" many fear. To the same end, our county leaders already are looking at options to ensure the road is a true "parkway," with beautiful vistas and open space on either side of the roadway. Kane County's Farmland Protection program can play an important role.
Growth will occur with or without the Prairie Parkway &emdash; the question is how our community will respond to that reality. We can choose to wait and address our transportation needs after they have become abundantly clear. Or we can use the information at hand to invest in a transportation system capable of serving our growing communities.
For this lifelong resident, the answer is clear.