Part 1: Get them on your side

Wilmette residents and officials celebrated the official opening of Sheridan Road bike lanes earlier this summer with a ribbon cutting.

And, like any huge construction project, it was in the works for a while.

“It really started with the Bike Task Force when we were putting together our Master Bicycle Plan in the ’90s,” said Linda Reilly, Wilmette engineering assistant.

The formation and dedication of the Bicycle Task Force turned out to be critical in this instance.

The Task Force worked with the city to make sure bicyclists’ needs and concerns were always addressed. So, by the time the Sheridan Road reconstruction project came up, the city was already thinking of cyclists.

Nancy Schofer, a Wilmette resident who lives on Sheridan Road and sits on the Task Force, said the group always advocated bicycling, like more bike parking in the central business district.

One of the group’s goals was to get the village to consider bicyclists’ interest when any roads were resurfaced or reconstructed. Today, policy wonks call that idea Complete Street, but Schofer said they didn’t have a name for it then.

Eventually, Sheridan Road – a road with plenty of bike traffic – needed to be reconstructed.

And because the Task Force had been so active, a bike lane on Sheridan Road was already on the village’s radar.

“From day one, [the newly constructed road] always included a bike lane,” she said, thanks to the strong bike task force and the number of cyclists using Sheridan Road.

At that time, Sheridan Road had two lanes of traffic in each direction. To make space, the village removed two of the travel lanes and installed a middle turn lane. (Read David Gleason’s explanation of this kind of “road diet” here.)

Reilly said it is important to engage elected officials and become part of the conversation.

“It was an instance of everyone cooperating,” Schofer said.

You can do it, too!

This is only one way you can build political will. Here are a few other ideas:

• Directly engage an elected official. Bring them on a bike ride. Show them where the problem is.
• Attend public meetings. When elected officials see what their constituents care about, they are more likely to make it a priority
• Partner with other organizations. Our Open Streets event is a perfect example of it. We partnered with community-based organizations and city agencies to make that a reality.
• Call us! We are ready to help you build a movement around biking and walking in your community.

Next: Become the funding insider.