Bicycle Friendly Community

Naperville, IL | Bronze Level

Community Highlights: The city of Naperville has focused on providing a bike network that will encourage residents and visitors to choose to access destinations, especially the Metra Stations, by bike instead of car. The city recently installed a pedestrian and bicycle bridge across Illinois Route 59, a six-lane strategic regional arterial. The bridge has significantly improved bicycle and pedestrian mobility to several key destinations in southwest Naperville, including a high school, library, sports complex, Park District facilities, and retail establishments. The interconnected network of on-street and off-street pathways has been established through the collaborative efforts of many partnerships. The city actively coordinates with multiple jurisdictions, including DuPage County, the Forest Preserve Districts of DuPage and Will Counties, the Naperville Park District, and the League of Illinois Bicyclists, to implement the bicycle plan network, provide outreach activities, and incorporate regional initiatives into local plans.

Most Compelling Community Statistic: In a 2008 bicycle survey conducted by Metra, the commuter rail service provider in Naperville, and the League of Illinois Bicyclists, a mode share of approximately 3.6 percent of commuters access the Naperville Metra Station by bicycle. Overall, the number of commuters accessing the stations by bicycle has increased greatly since 2002, when the city began recording monthly data for the number of bicycles parked at the Metra stations. In comparing the summer bicycle counts for the months of July, August, and September 2002 to the same months of 2008, there has been an increase of 30 percent in the number of bicycle parked at the Metra Stations.