Model of Good Transport
Monorail, Moving Sidewalks
In Proposal for Des Plaines
By Jim Masek
Des Plaines residents soon
could be whisked to O'Hare
Airport by a 135-mile-per-
hour monorail, carried to the
Randhurst Shopping Center
by moving sidewalks or pick-
ed up by buses which respond
to telephone calls.
The services could be in-
cluded in a plan for a revolu-
tionary transportation center
proposed for Des Plaines by
Latham-Tyler-Jensen, a
Chicago city planning firm.
THE FIRM has been trying
to set up meetings between
Des Plaines and U. S. Depart-
ment of Transportation of-
ficials on the proposal, which
could become a reality within
two years if the federal
government is willing to back
if financially.
Mayor Herbert Behrel was
to meet with federal officials
yesterday, but had to cancel
the trip to Washington
because he has been ill with
the flu.
Latham Tyler-Jensens Presi-
dent Robert Tyler now is
trying to arrange another
meeting between Behrel and
the federal representatives,
'hopefully before the end of
the year."
The meeting would be to
hammer out details of the
transportation center pian.
According to Tyler, his
firm has proposed a
fransporation pjaif fof rtje city
Which would involve^con-
nections between Des Plaines
and other nearby commercial
and transportation hubs and
improved service within the
city.
"There are a great many
ways of doing this," Tyler said
yesterday. Some now are
being used elsewhere, some
are only in the planning
stage."
HE SA1I) that fast
monorail trains and moving
sidewalks could carry com-
muters from here to their
destination. Residents also
might be able to use a dial-a-
bus system. Under such a
plan, buses would not have
fixed routes, but would have
a variety of pickup points.
' "Then, when you want a
bus, you would just telephone
for it,” Tyler said. "It would
provide a more customized
bus service."
A monorail between here
and O’Hare Airport is one of
the possibilities that would be
studied, he said.
It’s appeal primarily is that
it uses up less land than any
other surface transportation
system, and therefore would
cost less to build," Tyler said
Mayor Behrel said that a
monorail between here and
O'Hare could make Des
Plaines the center of traffic
between the northwest
suburbs and the airport.
A person wanting to fly
somewhere could bring his
baggage here, board (he
monorail, be taken to O’Hare,
board the plane and fly to his
destination," Behrel said.
He wouldn't have to worry
about his baggage from the
time he arrives here until the
time he gets off the plane."
The city and the Chicago
& North Western Ry. already
are planning a multi-story
parking garage over the
railroad tracks in downtown
Des Plaines. Such a structure
could be incorporated into the
transportation center plan, ac-
cording to the mayor.
TYLER SAID that no cost
estimates yet are available on
his firm's plan. He said,
however, that in other projects
the Department of
Transportation has put up
two-thirds of the financing,
with the community providing
the rest in one way or
another.”
The city's contribution
would not have to be finan-
cial,” Tyler said. "It's con-
tribution could be in the
services of its officials and
engineers. But these are the
kinds of details which would
have to be worked out
between the City of Des
Plaines and the Department of
Transportation.”
He said that a transporta-
tion center here might interest
the federal government
because it would be the first
plan of its kind and could be
a model for similar plans in
other suburban towns
throughout the country.
In Des Plaines, he said,
planners would be dealing
with one major commuter rail-
road, the Chicago & North
Western, one community and
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