Bellevue makes pedestrian safety a priority

BELLEVUE, WI – (WGBW ) – Bicycling and pedestrian safety is a priority in the Village of Bellevue. So says Village of Bellevue Trustee Tom Murphy.  Bellevue is working with Brown County to update its bicycle and pedestrian plan for the village.

“We try to cooperate with different municipalities as well,” said Murphy. “You want that connectivity with different useful destinations as well.”

Murphy said that in the last couple of years, the Village of Bellevue has reconstructed several roads, adding sidewalks along the way. They’ve painted lines on crosswalks to improve visibility.

Painting crosswalks and installing sidewalks have very different price tags. Murphy said the village works to find the balance between what is wanted and needed and what they can afford to do for pedestrian safety.

“We do a lot of community surveys. We updated our comprehensive plan the other year. And you see that in the feedback all the time: ‘Hey! It would be great if we had a sidewalk here. It would be great if we had a beacon or a crosswalk over here,’” Murphy said. “Again it’s just like everything else. You’ve got to balance the needs and the wants and what can we afford.”

Murphy appeared on the Maino and the Mayor Show that airs weekday mornings on WGBW, 97.9 and WISS, 98.3.