Drivers on the 500-600 block of Belleforte Avenue will soon see speed feedback signs and increased Oak Park Police Department enforcement after the Village Board approved traffic calming measures for the narrow north-south corridor on Tuesday, July 28.

The board passed Motion 26-185 on its consent agenda, concurring with the Transportation Commission's recommendation for temporary speed feedback signage and targeted OPD speed enforcement on the two-block stretch between Chicago Avenue and Augusta Street. Public Works crews will install the equipment using existing resources, according to the village's meeting agenda, though no specific installation date has been set.

A scaled-back plan

The approval caps a months-long process that hit a snag in June. When the item first reached the Village Board on Tuesday, June 23, it included a broader package: high-visibility crosswalk markings, a mid-block paint-and-post pinch point, no-parking-here-to-corner signage, and targeted enforcement.

Public Works Director Rob Sproule pulled the item from that night's agenda, telling the board at the June 23 meeting that staff "had received feedback from residents indicating there may not be majority support for the proposed recommendations." The motion was referred back to the Transportation Commission, which reviewed it again at its Monday, July 13 meeting and returned it to the board with only the speed feedback signs and enforcement.

Petition and data

Residents Bill Rohlfing and Peter Thompson filed the traffic calming petition on Sept. 13, 2025, collecting signatures from 51% of the block's street frontage. In their petition letter, they wrote that high-speed traffic on the block is "a danger to children, pets, and senior citizens" and that drivers reach estimated speeds of 40 to 50 mph on the quarter-mile stretch.

Belleforte Avenue is a 26-foot-wide local street with one lane in each direction. A CivilTech Engineering analysis scored the block at 28 out of 100 points, just above the 25-point minimum required to bring a petition before the commission. Consultant Steven Pautsch presented the data at the commission's Monday, April 13 meeting, finding the 85th-percentile southbound speed was 26 mph, just 1 mph over the posted limit. The accident history showed no correctable trends.

The commission voted unanimously to recommend calming measures anyway, with Commissioner Jenkins adding a chicane and corner signage to the original staff proposal. That broader package was ultimately what drew resident pushback before the June 23 board meeting.

Pattern on residential streets

The Belleforte vote is the second confirmed traffic calming approval in roughly five weeks. The board approved a mid-block pinch point and targeted enforcement for the 100 block of North Lombard Avenue on June 23, to be installed as part of the village's Bike Boulevard project. The board also approved an $849,961 contract with Marking Specialists Corporation on July 28 for bike boulevard pavement markings and signage improvements near schools and parks, partially funded by an Invest in Cook Grant.

Belleforte Avenue has seen prior calming action: in November 2025, the board adopted an ordinance establishing northbound stop control on Belleforte at Greenfield Street as part of the northwest Oak Park traffic study.

No installation date has been set.