When I moved here, I supported the Longmeadow Parkway project. But now, I am wondering if this will be a government boondoggle:
If you work during the week (250 days/year), that is $750 in tolls added to your family budget, just to cross the river back-and-forth. Add to that any practices or games for your kids, etc. or weekend shifts.
All other toll bridges in Illinois are state-to-state only. The one “local” toll bridge, in Rockford, just had its 50-cent tolls removed because it didn’t work. Locals avoided it and it never generated the expected revenue. It never spurred economic development, either. Are we really serious about tolls, given that kind of weak track record?
Read the full letter to the editor of the Daily Herald from an Algonquin resident here.
I am opposed to this “boondoggle” as well, but for different reasons.
The plan seems to include a junction at rt 62 just east of rt 25. The details include a left turn lane just west of the Power lines and at the curve before the steep hill going west. If this lane is full of stopped traffic and backs up with the typical evening rush hour numbers of cars, there will be an increase in the number of accidents that already plague this area of rt 62.
If folks who travel westbound at night and eastbound in the am are planning to use this future highway and it ends at rt 62 at this junction, I can only for-see major traffic jams awaiting exit onto 62 in the mornings and the same awaiting entrance to westbound every evening.
Couldn’t they modify the plan and make the junction at rt 25 only. That way the highway would end on a 4 lane road with adequate approaches and space to accommodate the rush-hour numbers without risking the potential accidents on the two lane section of rt 62.
If those wishing to get farther west into algonquin and LITH want to make a choice as to going west via this new highway – they can decide at the rt 59 and rt 58 intersections which way to go – either continue on west on rt 62 (which may be already backed up) or left onto rt 58 and come up rt 25 to the entrance to this highway. This would more evenly split the major traffic vs. encouraging more traffic onto rt 62 than it already handles.
Or even those who travel home westwards from farther east may choose to take rt 72 west instead of rt 62 at all. They can still decide to travel up rt 25 to get onto this highway later in their commute.
My neighbor told me Meroni’s holding a meeting tonight at 7;00 for Autumn Tr residents to talk about updates on Longmeadow. I’m not sure if it’s a private meeting or not – does anybody know?
Excuse me, but who the h*ll is Meroni to hold a “private” meeting? This is an issue which impacts more than Autumn Trail. Everyone in the village should be welcome to attend.
@Albert — you raise some excellent points. I hope you and other neighbors can get your input to Kane County before it’s too late. Seems as though Meroni, Selman and Gohl haven’t done anything to help you.
Good points Roger. I would think any who travel rt 62 would be concerned about additional traffic and potential risks if this project impacts the way I am imagining it will. Hopefully our Village Reps will assist in bringing these concerns to the County and also gathering more input from all who will be impacted by the plan as it stands today.
Per the meeting last night – the number of vehicles estimated to use the new (proposed) parkway and toll bridge per day was only ~8500. Versus ~35,000 use rt 62/Algonquin rd. per day. Seems to me they could end the parkway at rt 25 and leave Algonquin rd. alone.
Is this quiet damage control on the part of Trustee Meroni? Nothing she can say or do can minimize the damage caused by Ex-President Abboud and his cronies on the Board on this issue. Too little, too late, and President Pro-Tem Gohl has yet to answer to the residents. To Roger’s point, why was this not a published “open” meeting, or is the “behind closed doors” government habit too difficult for Trustee Meroni and friends to break?
You ask why Maroni wanted a “private meeting?” I’ll tell you.
She didn’t like answering “tough” questions from knowledgeable and professional residents who knew more than she did on the subject. She is searching to obtain plausible deniability on the fact that she was negiligent in not communicating with village residents on the forth-comming toll way that will snake its way through our fair city.
Where is Fritz hiding lately? Haven’t seen or heard from him in a while.