Local Trails Make Every Month Bike Month Around Here

At every opportunity, I opt for the two-wheel mode of transportation to get between the workplace and home. It’s a seven-mile bicycle trip each way and, let me tell you, it’s pure bliss coming to work.

From driveway to desk, it’s a ride in the park—literally. The regional trail systems—linear parks—to which we have access offer a network of corridors that connect our communities and allow for safe, non-motorized travel.

We’re especially fortunate where we live. The Fox Valley Park District owns and maintains 41 miles of regional trails that run throughout Aurora, North Aurora and Montgomery and link with other trails that go far beyond.

Between the Fox River Trail, the Virgil Gilman Trail and the Illinois Prairie Path, we enjoy the best of the best. All three have been nationally recognized by the Rails to Trails Conservancy, confirming what locals have known for years.

May is National Bike Month. We’re in the midst of Bike to Work Week right now, and Friday is designated as Bike to Work Day. My question: why isn’t this the standard every day, every week, every month and every year?

With assets that are the caliber of those three trails—and other linking trails—ours provides a transportation grid that is not only fun, but functional. Built for recreation, they also serve as conduits for commuting.

With gasoline prices rocketing toward $5 per gallon, local trails are a smart alternative for commuting and errand-running. Bicycling saves money, provides innumerable health benefits, both physical and mental, and helps to create a cleaner environment.

According to Bicycle Retailer magazine, only one trip in every 100 is taken by bicycle. If that ratio were raised to two in 100—which still translates to less than one bike trip every two weeks for the average person—the U.S. would save 462 million gallons of gasoline, a savings that would result in one less day of importing foreign oil.

The Illinois Department of Transportation estimates it costs $9,000 a year to own and operate a car. The same study put a $130 annual price tag on maintaining a bicycle. The bicycle advocacy group Bikes Belong says bicyclists who commute 10 miles round trip save $10 per day vs. driving and 10 pounds of carbon dioxide emissions.

Those hours behind the wheel—443 for the average American driver—could be spent in the saddle, burning calories instead of carbon while enjoying a beneficial workout rather than an exercise in frustration sitting in gridlocked traffic.

Get pedaling. Our world-class trails beckon. Whether for work or play, workout or recreation—or all of them—they are a true treasure.

Jeff Long is the public relations manager for the Fox Valley Park District. Contact him at jlong@fvpd.net

Fox Valley Park District
Upcoming Events

Friday-Saturday, May 13-14: Community-wide Garage Sale, Prisco Community Center, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Saturday, May 14: Sheep to Shawl at Blackberry Farm, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Friday, May 20: Afternoon Tea at the Greenhouse (FVPD Greenhouse, 259 S. Russell Ave., Aurora)
Saturday, May 21: Flower Power Planting Parties at Blackberry Farm, Phillips Park Family Aquatic Center and Splash Country Water Park, 9 to 11 a.m.