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Keeping Up on Willow Road
This web site location is designed to keep you informed on what is going on about Willow Road. We will try to update it weekly or as needed to make sure you are aware of any upcoming meetings, important dates, etc.
President Birkinbine Separates Fact from Fiction
and Political Posturing on the Past and Future of
Willow Road
Dear Residents,
In the past months and weeks, various letters, newspaper articles and the newsletter of State Senator Jeff
Schoenberg have published quotes from the Senator accusing Northfield of being "uncooperative" in
working toward a safer, better Willow Road. Some of the claims made by him have been so blatantly false
such as calling on Northfield to "stop its endless stalling tactics and to fully cooperate with IDOT in the
selection of an engineering firm” that the Village of Northfield challenged his accusations by filing a
Freedom of Information request of IDOT to produce any and all documents and letters that might back up
his claims that Village officials have ever refused to meet with IDOT. Of the copies of various letters and
documents the Village received from IDOT, none supported the allegation that Northfield had been
uncooperative or had refused to meet. The following are some of the other comments/questions which
need to be addressed to help you separate fact from fiction.
Why was the three lane Willow Road Plan that was agreed to by IDOT abandoned?
The three lane Willow Road Plan was a 1999 compromise plan between the Village, the community and IDOT. In order to expedite the project, the Village oversaw the management of the required Phase I and
Phase II engineering in 1999 and 2000. The Village was reimbursed by IDOT for over a half a million
dollars for this effort. When Phase III, which is the actual construction, was to begin in 2005, IDOT’s
funds were diverted to other projects delaying the work on Willow Road. Later, in 2006, Senator
Schoenberg, at the urging of Glenview, directed IDOT to cancel the agreed upon three lane Willow Road
plan in his capacity as Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee.
Senator Schoenberg states "independent studies concluded that a prior plan (the three lane
plan) demonstrated inadequate traffic capacity and had serious funding shortfalls." Is this
true?
The Village of Northfield has been trying to obtain information on the "independent studies" referred to by
Senator Schoenberg. To date, even after requesting this information, no "independent study" has been
produced. During the years 1997 to 1999, when meetings between Northfield, our residents, other
communities and IDOT engineers were held and the three lane plan was developed, no "independent
studies" pointed out any flaws with the three lane plan. In fact, IDOT approved both the Phase I and Phase
II engineering drawings for the three lane Willow Road Plan. A recent news article indicated that the study
might be referring to computer modeling done by IDOT. If so, it strains credibility to consider IDOT
"independent" on the subject of bigger and wider roads.
With respect to cost, the original three lane Willow Road from Sunset Ridge Road to the bridge east of
Bristol Street was projected to cost $5.4 million dollars in 2000. When IDOT said they were not going
ahead with the project in 2005, they noted the project at that time was projected to cost $6.2 million. Now,
IDOT's own estimate to build the proposed four lane Willow Road is $25 million.
How long will it take to redo engineering to once again get to Phase III where the project was stalled in 2005?
If all goes as planned by IDOT, Phase I and II design engineering of Willow Road will take about 48
months or 4 years. So, in approximately 2012 or 2013, IDOT may be ready to bid their project - if $25
million can be found to pay for it.
Can Senator Schoenberg and neighboring communities determine the configuration of Willow Road through Northfield without considering the needs/wishes of Northfield residents?
Senator Schoenberg boasts that with his help of the $92,000 grant for the Lakota Study, the Northfield
community did have the opportunity to examine plans for the roadway and find ways to make it safer.
Apparently, it does not matter to Senator Schoenberg and IDOT that the overwhelming consensus from the
study was for a three lane configuration versus four lanes. Northfield representatives remain adamant that
the new road must be safe for children crossing to schools and parks and they do not believe this can be
achieved with four lanes.
Is Northfield to blame for the current condition of Willow Road?
Willow Road is under the jurisdiction of the Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT). While
Northfield, like Northbrook and Glenview, has not agreed with IDOT's plans for widening Willow Road
over the past years, IDOT is still responsible for maintaining the road and keeping it in good driving condition. They have not. Except for minimal pothole repairs and, until this summer, there has not been any true resurfacing or repaving of Willow Road in Northfield in over 30 years.
Will four lanes help make the section from Sunset Ridge Road to Bristol Street safer?
The principal problem identified with the two lane Willow Road is caused by cars stopping to make
leftturns and, therefore, holding up traffic and, the safety issues inherent in drivers quickly making a left
turn in front of on-coming traffic. Yet another problem is cars passing illegally on the gravel shoulder. To
avoid these safety problems in the compromise plan, the Traffic and Transportation Committee, engineers
and IDOT provided the middle turn lane (third lane) to eliminate cars having to stop for left turning
vehicles. They also determined that some streets should have cul de sacs and others would permit only
right in/right out turns to cut down on left turns and potential accidents. With the four lane Willow Road
that Glenview has demanded and Senator Schoenberg has dictated, the issues associated with left turns will
continue to be a problem. Now cars making left turns will be crossing two lanes of on-coming traffic and
will be holding up at least one lane of traffic with waiting vehicles possibly veering into the other lane of
traffic instead of onto a gravel shoulder to avoid a turning vehicle. Northfield does not believe this is safer.
In reality, Senator Schoenberg's four lane plan will actually have to be 5 or 6 lanes to allow for turn lanes at
intersections.
Why is Senator Schoenberg misleading others about the Village of Northfield and Willow
Road?
Senator Schoenberg has been responding to pressure from the Villages of Glenview and Northbrook that
want to see traffic get to their new shops and stores more quickly. The fact that they each have six to eight
times as many voters than Northfield is apparently enough reason for the Senator to abandon his former
position against villages meddling in the affairs of neighboring communities. To distract voters from this
change of philosophy, he has been waving the flag of "safety" while dishonestly charging Northfield
officials with employing stalling tactics and refusing to attend meetings. It is not pleasant to have to make
such statements but the Senator's actions and written words leave me no choice. What makes the situation
even sadder as far as saving time is concerned, IDOT's own study states that a four lane road would save
drivers only 89 seconds between Sunset Ridge Road and the Eden’s Expressway compared to the three lane
road. Northfielders don't believe that 89 seconds justify jeopardizing the safety of our school children and
citizens.
Note: It is interesting to observe that in Wilmette, Sheridan Road is being reconstructed into a three lane
road and in downtown Glenview, Glenview Road is also being converted to three lanes.
John L. Birkinbine, Jr.
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