Red Gate Bridge plans progress

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ST. CHARLES – The team designing the proposed Red Gate Bridge in St. Charles still is accepting public input on the look of the $30 million project.

Opinions – solicited on the bridge’s Web site, www.redgatebridge.com – are being taken into consideration as to how the bridge over the Fox River, between Routes 25 and 31, should fit into the natural surroundings.

So far, designers have engineered a bridge with three piers and a pedestrian and bike path that goes under the bridge for maximum safety and leisure.

“We looked at the cost of putting a sidewalk on the bridge and compared that to the cost of separating the pedestrian bridge and put it underneath,” said John Ritchie, a senior structural engineer. “The cost between the two is about the same.”

Aesthetic elements related to the bike and pedestrian path – which will connect an existing path along Red Gate Road on the west side of the river to the Fox River Trail on the east side – are being considered strongly, Ritchie said.

“We thought we’d put most enhancements into the pedestrian part of the bridge,” he said.

“People walking are going at a much slower pace, so they have the time to appreciate details,”Richie said.

“The best place to view the bridge is from the bike path and from the river, so our idea was to make that the view that we would try to put the most enhancements into.”

The project, including engineering, construction, landscaping and other costs, is expected to cost between $25 and $30 million, officials have said.

Recently, the city council was asked to give input on several design concepts, including how cables would be positioned and railings constructed on the two-lane bridge, among other things.

The public also has asked questions and commented on such things as the number of piers that would be placed in the Fox River, Ritchie said. Some comments were generated at city meetings, others from the bridge Web site.

Any comments left on the Web site go directly to Ritchie.

The design team, which is finalizing the first phase of the project, is scheduled to present the final bridge design concepts to the city council on March 26.

City officials have said they hope to have the bridge built by the end of 2010.