Merchants say Bigfoot exists
And also, bike-ped upgrades on Chicago's Lincoln Avenue “could put existing shops out of business”. Streetsblog debunks this unscientific nonsense from Block Club Chicago, but leaves open the possibility of hirsute cryptids roaming Lake Shore Drive.
Amtrak's Chicago-Miami Floridian
🤨 You can actually buy a seat on this train and keep it all the way from Chicago to Miami if you want to. But since it routes through Washington, D.C. and has a travel time of 48 hours I don't think I would.
https://www.narprail.org/happening-now/news/blog/amtrak-unveils-chicago-miami-floridian/
Illinois High Speed Railway Commission Gets Work Started
"IHSRC has begun initial design work for a high-speed line linking St. Louis and Chicago...The study provides a chance for the public to weigh in and say that only high-speed rail will do. This means building an electrified line, with no grade crossings, that allows speeds of 186 mph or faster, and achieves a trip time fast enough for real advantages and appeal."
https://www.hsrail.org/blog/illinois-high-speed-railway-commission-gets-work-started/
Chicago Organizes to Stop Greyhound Kicking Passengers to Curb
"Chicagoans are rallying against a decision by Greyhound to abandon its intercity bus terminal...(Greyhound) will abandon its lease at its Harrison Street terminal at the end of September, and begin offloading its passengers onto the curb outside Chicago Union Station."
Chicago Advocates are Demanding a People-Friendly Lake Shore Drive
"At the Save Our Lakefront Rally, hundreds of people called on the Illinois and Chicago transportation departments to halt plans to rebuild North DuSable Lake Shore Drive as a car-choked eight-lane barrier...Preferably the highway would be converted to a more people-friendly surface boulevard that would make it easier to walk, roll, bike, and take buses to the beach."
A New Path to Chicago-Milwaukee Regional Rail
Could there be an hourly train from Chicago to Milwaukee? This is a very technical article on how to get that done. I don't fully understand the details, need to study it more.
"Chicago and Milwaukee are big enough, and close enough, that hourly service should be the minimum.
Rebuilding the Union Pacific’s lakefront line to extend Metra’s UP North service is the quickest way to make it happen."
https://www.hsrail.org/blog/a-new-path-to-chicago-milwaukee-regional-rail/
Bicycling grew more in Chicago than in any other major American city in the last five years
"According to an analysis sponsored by CDOT, bicycling has grown more in Chicago than in any other major American city in the last five years. The study showed a 119% increase in biking between fall 2019 and spring 2023, marking the largest jump among the country’s 10 largest cities."
A New Path to Chicago – Milwaukee Regional Rail
"With just seven roundtrips daily, the Hiawatha is already the most popular state-supported Amtrak route in the Midwest. Hourly trains trains will bring Chicago and Milwaukee closer together, strengthen the economic and social ties between them, and help revitalize both city centers.
This corridor is also the foundation for building regional rail to Green Bay, Madison, and many other cities"
https://www.hsrail.org/blog/a-new-path-to-chicago-milwaukee-regional-rail/
Chicago is coming off an “incredible year for cycling”
They've installed 27 miles of “new and upgraded protected bike lanes,” built 18 miles of neighborhood greenways, and distributed 1,900 free bikes.
"The Divvy bike rental system is at an “all-time high,” up 70% since 2019, David Smith said. Overall bike trips on an “average weekday” have increased by 120% over the same period."
DANG! Chicago's Dickens Avenue Neighborhood Greenway completed
"A contraflow ("wrong-way") bicycle lane makes biking east on the one-way westbound segments of Dickens safer and legalizes it. Sidewalk extensions and raised crosswalks shorten crossing distances, calm motorized traffic, and help keep drivers from turning fast around corners. And the speed limit has been lowered from 30 to 20 mph."
Illinois Supreme Court reaffirms the 1998 Boub V. Wayne case that endangered bike riders
"Not only did this ruling make it harder for bike riders to recover damages if they crash on a poorly maintained Illinois road, it also discourages municipalities from protecting people on bikes by building bicycle infrastructure, because, counterintuitively, that makes them more likely to be held responsible if a cyclist is injured."
O’Hare flights that could be served better by trains
This is kind of pie-in-the-sky, and I really prefer longform articles to this kind of hyperlinked infographic...still, conceptually, I love the idea!
https://www.hsrail.org/blog/ohare-flights-served-better-by-trains/
Uninformed people claim Chicago's Augusta protected bike lanes are dangerous
""Rubio, who [illegally] parks on the street outside her home... [is] now dodging car traffic on one side and bike traffic on the other as she tries to get her small children out of the car," Barnes states. That is, Rubio feels endangered by the completely mundane task of checking for traffic, albeit bike traffic, before crossing the street."
Chicago's new protected bike lanes on Belmont are a game changer
"Thanks to new concrete-protected bike lanes on Belmont, one of the city’s most unpleasant and dangerous intersections is now a choice route for people traveling on two wheels."
Running about a mile from Kimball to Campbell, the new lanes provide safer passage for bike riders under the Kennedy Expressway and over the north branch of the Chicago River.
#Chicago #cycling #BikeLanes
https://chi.streetsblog.org/2023/08/30/the-new-belmont-protected-bike-lanes-are-a-game-changer
"My dad always said, ‘No matter what, recession, depression, we’ll still be able to eat.’ Then came bike lanes.” 🤔
https://www.chicagomag.com/chicago-magazine/april-2023/bikes-vs-business/
Video killed the bicycle lane: Advocates, officials intervene after TV crew blocks PBL
"A couple of folks on Twitter said they notified downtown alder person Brendan Reilly’s (42nd) office about the obstruction. “Props to Ald. Reilly’s office staff,” one tweeted. “I called them at 10:15 a.m. to let them know about this obstruction. They just told me that someone went out there, ticketed these people, and ensured that the bike lanes are now clear.”
Let's go Brandon! Brandon Johnson in the runoff for Chicago Mayor. Here's what he said about biking:
"We also need to install more well-designed, dedicated bike lanes, so that cyclists feel safe on our streets. By investing in viable alternatives to automobiles, we can reduce congestion and make getting around Chicago faster and more pleasant for everyone."