BELLEVILLE – After a competitive bidding process, St. Clair County Transit District (SCCTD) today announced Belleville-based Hank’s Excavating & Landscaping, Inc. was awarded a $767,952 construction contract for Phase I of the Old Collinsville Road Trail. This approximately ¾ mile-long trail project will connect Richland Creek Bikeway in Swansea to Lebanon Avenue in Belleville, as well as to the Old Collinsville Road Bike Trail Phase II project currently under construction from Lake Lorraine Drive to Munie Road in Swansea. This latest phase will further extend the reach of the MetroBikeLink System, which features 14 continuous miles of trails in Southwestern Illinois and links users to six Metro Transit Centers.
Phase I of the Old Collinsville Road Trail will feature a separate 10-foot-wide, shared-use, asphalt path within the Old Collinsville Road right of way; a pedestrian bridge over Richland Creek; and traffic signal modifications for safe crossing at Lebanon Avenue. It also will link Belleville’s existing sidewalk system along Old Collinsville Road and West Boulevard, providing pedestrian accommodations from Belleville East High School and approximately 2,000 homes nearby. The project is underway and is expected to be completed later this fall.
“This project is one of several in the works designed to further connect our county’s growing trail system,” said Ken Sharkey, managing director for St. Clair County Transit District.
The first section of the MetroBikeLink System opened in 2002 and was comprised of a four-mile trail, extending from Southwestern Illinois College to the Swansea MetroLink Station. Since then, the system has expanded to include the Memorial, Fairview Heights, and Shiloh Scott sections for a total of 14 miles of trail adjacent to the MetroLink light rail tracks. Additional trails have been built by SCCTD to connect to this main artery, including SCCTD Orchard Loop Trail Phases I and II, the Engelmann Park Connector, and the Old Collinsville Road Trail (currently under construction) totaling another eight miles of SCCTD connected trails. These accessible pathways, along with the connecting trails from other municipalities, will combine to provide over 35 miles of connected trails in St. Clair County.
Founded in 1981, St. Clair County Transit District contracts with Bi-State Development to provide public transportation services in St. Clair County, Ill., by way of 11 Metro Transit Centers; 12 MetroBus routes; on-demand, shared-ride services and more – connecting individuals to jobs, education, healthcare, entertainment, the MetroBikeLink and other destinations. Those with questions about service, they can call (618) 628-8090 between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. Monday through Friday. For more information, visit www.scctd.org.
