Despite an estimate that about a dozen people regularly used the pedestrian tunnel under the Burlington Northern-Santa Fe railroad tracks each day, the Riverside village board is now in possession of a petition signed by some 230 people who want the tunnel to remain open.
Riverside resident Ingrid Lulich, who lives south of the BNSF tracks and who commutes to Chicago three days a week, presented Village Manager Kathleen Rush with signatures she collected between Dec. 14 and the Dec. 19 meeting of the board.
“When I learned of the proposal to fill in the tunnel, I was shocked,” Lulich said. “Then I started asking friends, neighbors and business owners, and they also expressed shock. Then I contacted the Chamber of Commerce, schools and other commuters, and they all seemed surprised.
“I ask you on behalf of residents who signed the petition to reconsider your position.”
On Dec. 5, trustees agreed in principle that the cost to rehabilitate the 90-year-old underpass outweighed its usefulness to commuters and pedestrians. According to a study performed by the village Public Works Director Michael Hullihan, it would cost between $600,000 and $1.6 million to rehab the tunnel.
The BNSF railroad notified Rush in September that their engineers expressed concern over the tunnel’s condition, and asked that the village either devise a plan to rehabilitate it by March 2006 or expect the railroad to close the tunnel. The village’s contract with the BNSF states that while the railroad owns the tunnel, the village is responsible for its maintenance and repair.
At the Dec. 5 meeting where trustees discussed the issue, all appeared in favor of letting the railroad close the tunnel.
Lulich, however, said the tunnel was an invaluable safety asset for the village and that while trustees did an estimate of cost for the tunnel’s repair, they needed to do a “cost-benefit analysis” regarding its removal.
She said with 200 trains per day traveling through the rail corridor and as many as 140 school children crossing the tracks each day on their way to Central School, Hauser Junior High and Riverside-Brookfield High School, closing the tunnel would eliminate an important safety measure.
“It’s our obligation to make sure children have the safest route possible,” Lulich said. “My biggest fear is taking away that option.”
Lulich also questioned closing the tunnel in light of the village’s ongoing Transit-Oriented Development study, which predicts increased density in the downtown area and a greater number of pedestrians.
“What will [closing the tunnel] mean with increased foot traffic?” Lulich asked. “With higher density, more people will be crossing the tracks. I think we need to make this a safe and pedestrian-friendly area.”
Village President Harold J. Wiaduck Jr. responded by saying that it wasn’t the village’s decision to close the tunnel. Rather, he said, the decision is being made by the BNSF, which owns the tunnel.
“It’s up to them whether the tunnel is retained,” Wiaduck said. “The village isn’t the one instigating this.”
Trustee Kevin Smith encouraged those in favor of keeping the tunnel open “to go to the railroad, and put some pressure on them.”
But Riverside resident Parry Frank, who does transportation analysis for the Chicago Area Transportation Study (CATS) argued that it was the village’s job to seek out funding sources, and that there were sources available.
“Arlington Heights got $350,000 in [grant] funding and Western Springs got funding through the West Suburban Mass Transit District,” Frank said. “Getting that funding is not a citizen’s job. In Cook County 50 pedestrians have died this year at rail crossings; not one of them wanted to die.”
Lulich said that research she’s done shows grant opportunities specifically targeting areas near schools. She also called for the creation of a committee to investigate funding avenues.
Wiaduck responded that while he was aware of the grants available, “they’re not easy to get” and that the BNSF wanted a plan in place by March.
“Again, we are not in total control of whether this tunnel stays open,” Wiaduck said. “I don’t know if the railroad can be convinced not to close this tunnel.”
