free bike riding lessons for teens and adults on 9/19

  You don't need to have a bike to participate. Bikes will be available for use during classes. :)

free bike riding lessons for teens and adults on 8/15

 You don't need to have a bike to participate. Bikes will be available for use during classes. :)

free bike riding lessons for teens and adults on 7/18

 

free bike riding lessons for teens and adults starting 6/13

 

Chicago Mobility Collaborative meeting on 9/19

This public meeting is a quarterly event organized by Chicago Dept. of Transportation to get public input on current projects and ideas for future projects. This time it's happening on Thurs. 9/19 from 6-7:30 pm at Olive Harvey College, 10001 S. Woodlawn.

A few Divvy tips

I'm glad to see people riding Divvy bikes in Beverly, Morgan Park and other nearby neighborhoods. Unfortunately, some folks seem to need a refresher on how to lock up bikes at the end of their trips.

Pedal-only Divvy bikes need to be docked in a Divvy station (91st St. Metra, 99th St. Metra, 107th St. Metra, Beverly Arts Center and other locations). 

E-Divvy bikes can be locked up at other locations, but they need to be locked to a fixed object - Divvy station, bike rack, sign post, fence, etc. Because our ward has fewer stations, there is no additional fee for ending a trip in a location other than a Divvy station.

In the street or in the middle of a sidewalk is NOT a valid place to leave a Divvy bike at the end of a trip. Leaving the bike in Evergreen Park or another location outside the service area (Chicago and Evanston) can get you dinged for $25.  If a bike is left outside the service area at the end of a trip, it is disabled until retrieved by a Divvy employee.  

Please lock up the bike the right away at the end of your trip to help prevent damage, sidewalk blockage, or unavailability. A little courtesy goes a long way.

fundraiser for Major Taylor Trail on 8/10

Friends of the Major Taylor Trail, with help from Community Neighborhood Improvement Project, will be having a fundraising event on Sat. 8/10. The date of the event marks the 120th anniversary of Marshall "Major "Taylor winning the world 1-mile championship in Montreal, defeating Boston rival Tom Butler.

Choose from ride options of 5, 26, 30, 44, 50, 64, or 89 miles -- mix and match your choice of five segments to customize your experience.  

If you enjoy the trail, please sign up to help support our efforts to improve it.

Registration link for the event:
https://www.active.com/chicago-il/cycling/major-taylor-trail-keepers-2019

Registration and check in is from 7-7:30. A tribute to Major Taylor and special presentation is from 7:30-7:55am. All rides start at 8:00 a.m. at 115th St. just west of Halsted. All riders follow the Major Taylor Trail south and cross the Little Calumet River Bridge -- featuring the largest Major Taylor mural ever created -- into Whistler Woods.

At the start/finish location, there will be a bike rodeo for the children, a health awareness expo with free screenings and information, and a back-to-school festival.

Starting at 10 am at 115th and Halsted, you can test ride one of the new style Divvy bikes, talk to Divvy reps about where you'd like to see stations, and talk to CDOT reps about where you'd like to see bike routes in your neighborhood.

dockless bike share survey

We're at the end of the 6 month dockless bike share pilot program.  CDOT is now evaluating ridership data and public feedback.

Have you been using dockless bike share? Want to share your thoughts about it?

CDOT has put out a survey asking for your feedback on the program. Click here to take it.

If you've found dockless bike share (Jump, Lime and Pace) useful and would like to see it available here in the future, please say so in your survey comments. Many of us have enjoyed having this flexible transportation option.

do you want to see bike routes in the 19th ward?

With the addition of dockless bike share in our ward, Alderman O'Shea seems more open to the idea of creating bike routes to encourage more bike riding and more use of the dockless bikes.  This is a welcome opportunity to give input on a set of bike route ideas that were developed by CDOT during the initial round of public outreach for the Streets for Cycling Plan 2020.

The plan includes different types of routes, ranging from neighborhood greenways (for residential streets) to protected bike lanes on major streets like Vincennes.

Better conditions for riding can encourage development and growth of Safe Routes to School programs so that more kids can walk and bike safely to neighborhood schools. We've all seen how crazy and dangerous streets around schools can be around drop-off and pick-up times. Conditions can be hazardous for the kids themselves, for neighbors, and for anyone who needs to pass through those areas or streets that parents use to get there. I'm sure that many of you have seen the huge difference in morning and afternoon traffic volumes between weekdays when schools are in session and summer weekdays. Walking and biking without all that additional traffic is much safer and more pleasant.

If a lot more kids are walking and biking instead of being driven to school, it's a valuable opportunity for them to learn about navigating their neighborhood, street safety, decision making, and the environment around them. It creates a foundation for many basic life skills.

One of the benefits that many communities have seen from more people getting around by bike instead of car is a boost to neighborhood business districts. As long as there's a place to lock up bikes, and it's a place people can easily reach by bike, studies have shown that making streets more bike friendly can increase revenues. Local and regional bike touring bring more business once the word gets out that riding conditions are good.

Bike rides to visit craft breweries are increasingly popular. Those riders may visit other businesses along the way, in addition to breweries and brewpubs. Attracting a large bike group can bring $$$$ to our business districts. Businesses can serve a lot more customers if they're coming by bike instead of needing a lot of parking spaces. Unique businesses can make a neighborhood a popular destination.

You can take the survey here. The first map below shows an overview of the whole ward, while the 5 areas in smaller detail maps correspond to questions in the survey.

Area 1

Area 2

Area 3

Area 4

Area 5

The survey will be open until 10/31.  We hope that you'll spend a few minutes to take it.

If there are streets in the ward where you would like to be able to ride but you don't because conditions are too dangerous, please include that in comments.

dockless bike share update

Things have really been in flux in the last week. At first, it looked like the city would hold firm on the lock-to requirement and we would lose LimeBike and Ofo starting tomorrow.

I wrote to our alderman and CDOT, asking that they reconsider this, because so many potential destinations in the ward (especially on residential blocks) lack suitable fixed objects to which one could lock a bike at the end of their trips.

The point has been raised that the low number of bikes for such a large service area (the city south of 79th St. and east of the Skyway) was not sufficient for an effective pilot program.  I agree with that point. When bikes are equitably distributed so that neighborhoods through the service area have bikes in them, there aren't a lot of bikes to go around.

It's been a game of chicken between the city, LimeBike and Ofo going back and forth on the question of whether LimeBike and Ofo bikes without lock-to capability would remain in the service area until the 11/1 end of the pilot program.

Pace bikes is offering bike racks for installation on private property. I've heard that a few neighborhood businesses will be getting the racks soon, so there will be more bike parking available for both dockless bikes and personal bikes.

In the last few days, we've gotten some encouraging news. Jump, an e-assist bike with lock-to capability, will be launching here on Monday, so we will have another dockless option. The Forest Preserve District of Cook County also has its own dockless bike share program available in Dan Ryan Woods, Whistler Woods, and several other locations (including the Botanic Garden).

Today's news: the city is increasing the cap on the number of bikes with lock-to capability and allowing LimeBike and Ofo to stay. I'm curious to see how the big picture evolves between now and 11/1. Stay tuned...

miracles on 98th St. (and nearby)

In this week of tricks or treats, we've gotten a few little treats.

The section of 98th from Damen to Hoyne was ground down for repaving about 2 months ago and has effectively been a not-so-bike-friendly traffic calming zone.  It's finally been repaved. Yeah!!!

The sinkhole at 98th and Winchester that has been the subject of previous posts is in the process of being repaired and actually has proper barriers while work is being done. Yeah!!!!

The third wonder - progress on the new fieldhouse roof at Ridge Park. YEAH!!!!!

Miracles can happen. ;)

98th and Winchester update #3

I previously posted about a sinkhole at 98th and Winchester that wasn't properly covered, creating a hazard.

Last night there was a bigger steel plate and construction horses, forcing traffic around the plate. This morning there was a crew working to fix the sinkhole - yeah!!!

Vincennes update

I posted recently about a hazard created by a half-finished project along the Vincennes bike lane.  A few days I noticed that one of the spots was fixed. I took a trip over the weekend and confirmed that ALL the trenches have been filled. 

Thank you to Alderman Brookins and CDOT for taking care of this hazard..

hazard in Vincennes bike lane - or - a job half done

A few weeks ago, I spotted something on my Metra ride home that was baffling and disappointing.

In some spots along the east side of Vincennes, there are little areas of concrete that aren't connected by any sidewalk. They look like they might have been bus stops at some point. Are these used at all now, or are they just remnants?

One of several new ADA ramps with unfilled trenches in the northbound bike lane

At several locations along the northbound side of Vincennes from 95th to 89th, new ADA curb ramps were installed at these concrete remnants. There's a narrow trench along the right edge of the bike lane at each of these locations. Someone threw a bit of loose asphalt in the trench right at the bumpy part of the ramp, but the rest of each trench is unfilled - a potential hazard if someone riding in the bike lane doesn't see it before they hit it.

The thing that makes it more baffling is that the curb ramp installations on the west side of the street were completed with asphalt that was properly packed down, as seen in the photo below.

Vincennes at 89th St

I reported this to contacts at CDOT and never got any response. This week I reported it again - to CDOT and the 21st ward office. No response so far.

C'mon folks, can't this job be finished properly before winter to eliminate this hazard? Please make the northbound Vincennes bike lane safe again before we reach days of early darkness, when those most likely to get hurt are low income people of color who are riding for transportation.

If you're bothered by this, please share - on Twitter, Facebook or both. If you ride Vincennes or live in the 21st ward, please contact the 21st ward office.

a missed opportunity on 91st St.

After all the water and sewer work along 91st St. this summer, I hoped that the traffic diverter that was temporarily removed at 91st and Leavitt might be replaced with a smarter, more bike friendly design. Nope, same old STOOPID design.

These openings are wide enough for a confident bike rider, or perhaps a less confident one when the pavement is clean and in good condition. For a less confident rider in less favorable conditions, or for a senior riding a utility trike, these are less than adequate. A number of seniors in our neighborhood ride utility trikes like this one below for basic transportation. They should be able to ride safely through this intersection and others with diverters.

These Portland examples are much more suitable for accommodating bike traffic.

When infrastructure like these traffic diverters gets removed for construction, there should be an opportunity for public input for potential improvement.  We definitely need to see improvement at 93rd and Damen and at 94th and Leavitt whenever water and sewer work reaches those locations.

I'd love it if the diverter at 94th and Leavitt could be moved to 93rd. The fact that so much traffic is concentrated at 94th, only 1 block from the stoplight at 95th, causes a LOT of traffic conflict and often creates hazardous conditions for cyclists. This is one of only 2 direct street crossings with stoplights to get across 95th, so it's very important for bike use - and for everyone else trying to get across 95th.

when ADA creates new problems

The installation of new ADA curb ramps across the city has definitely been a mixed bag. Some of them are very well done. Some create moats whenever there is any significant moisture - counter-productive when you're trying to improve walkability, and even worse in winter when the moats turn into mini skating rinks.

Then we have the special case of corners where a multi-use trail crosses a busy street, like the intersection of 87th, Damen and Beverly Blvd.  Sometimes large groups ride through this intersection, and these newly installed ramps create potential hazards.

Crosswalk for Damen - nice wide ramp, safer design
I rarely see anyone crossing here.

Ramp for crossing 87th, following Major Taylor Trail -
forces a sharp turn. Traffic waiting to turn (just out of frame to the left)
usually limits opportunity to use EB ramp as spillover space for riders
trying to go SB and get across 87th during one light cycle.

If you're riding with a group of people trying to get across
87th during walk signal, competing with turning cars,
does having this edge that could cause someone to fall
seem like a good idea?

Southwest corner - 87th at Beverly Blvd.
If you were riding from the opposite corner with a group of people
trying to get across 87th,  would you want this raised corner
in your path of travel, or would you want something like the corner shown below?

No hard edges next to curb ramp
Doesn't an installation like this make a LOT more sense 
for a location where a trail is crossing a busy street?

We need MUCH better oversight over contractors doing these ADA curb ramp installations.  Too many mistakes like this are made, causing close calls, accidents and injuries that could have been avoided.

perpetual light

Update: I happened to notice a truck working on some lights on yet another block where all lights were on in daytime. Hopefully the ones I reported got fixed as well.

In my travels around the ward, I've noticed a significant increase in recent months in the number of locations where street lights are on all the time. Unfortunately, I'm also noticing that 311 requests to address this problem are often taking a very long time to get responses.

Lights have been on around Prospect Sq. and 91st St. near the Metra station for weeks now, with no response to a 311 report made a while ago. How much money is the city wasting on electricity for hundreds (or perhaps thousands) of streets that are on 24/7 for weeks or months on end?

Here's a link to report Street Lights On Days. It only takes a minute to do this online, and if you have 2 locations around the corner from each other, you can enter that in the description.

stoopid sign placement - update #2

On my way home yesterday evening, I found this problem solved. The stop sign at 98th and Longwood is now on a new pole of appropriate height, so the sign is well above head height for anyone except the tallest of NBA centers. Thank you CDOT!

----------------------------------------------------
I originally posted this on 4/2. This morning on my way to 99th St. station, I encountered a CDOT worker and asked him a few questions. He was looking at signage on the corners, so I guessed (correctly) that he was responding to this issue.

He said that, with the new ornamental light poles used in the streetscape project, the city doesn't attach street signs to those. The normal process for attaching street signs to light poles (tightening a metal band around the pole) could potentially damage the ornamental poles, so they use signposts in these locations instead.

I pointed out the problem with the too-low signs at 99th and Walden (blocked by ped crossing sign for eastbound traffic). I asked if they could install a taller pole. He said they don't have them that tall and would need to add an extension to the existing pole.

I also mentioned the face-height stop sign problem. He said that someone had reported the location as 98th and Walden. He went there and couldn't figure out what the problem was - because there is no problem at that location. I told him that location was incorrect and gave him the right spot. He said he would go to 98th and Longwood and check it out. These fixes may not happen immediately, but at least someone at CDOT has it on their radar now.

----------------------------------------------------
In my travels around the neighborhood in recent months, I've noticed that some signage has been replaced, or remounted on new poles, either due to the removal of old light poles (99th and Walden streetscape) or ADA curb ramp replacement.

At 98th and Longwood, we have this winner. The sidewalk is not exceptionally wide here, as illustrated by the bike and construction horses. The previously pole was closer to the curb. When the ADA curb ramp installation was done, they used a much shorter pole for the stop sign. I'm 6'1" and this sign is now at face height, as illustrated by the selfie below. Large signs like this should be well above head height. For safety, the bottom of this sign should at least 1 foot higher than it is. To make it worse, this too-short pole is set into the new concrete.

At 99th and Walden, where the old light pole at the corner was recently removed after completion of the streetscape project, the one way sign and street signs were placed on a pole short enough that they are mostly obscured by the pedestrian crossing sign and light pole in front of them.

We have another bit of brilliance at 99th and Wood, also related to the streetscape project. The old street signs at this corner were rather faded. They were mounted on an old light pole that has been removed. The new light pole slightly east of the corner. The one way sign and street signs are now mounted on a sign pole, like the ones at 99th and Walden. In addition to being so low that they're easily reachable, the pole is in line with the west side of the building, so that the building obscures the signs until one is right at the stop sign.

Someone has obviously messed with these already, as they are rotated out of position. Is it too much to ask for people to actually use their brains when installing signs, to look at context and place the signs so that they serve their intended purpose effectively?

I wish this was an April Fool's Day joke. Sadly, it's not. How long will it take to get this fixed? Can CDOT stop doing this? Time will tell.

free adult bike handling classes

If you never learned to ride a bike, or you haven't ridden in a long time and want to get back up to speed, this free one-time class is for you.

Chicago Department of Transportation's Bicycling Ambassadors will teach the classes. Divvy bikes will be provided as loaners for those who don't bring their own bikes. Attendees will receive *FREE* helmets.

August 15-19 from 6 PM to 8 PM
August 22-29 from 6 PM to 8 PM
August 29-September 2 from 6 PM to 8 PM

All classes will meet at Kennedy King College, 710 W 65th St (click link for map).

You MUST make a reservation to attend a class to make sure there are enough instructors available. Please call anytime before the class to reserve your space at 312-744-8147.

getting Divvy into the 19th ward

I originally posted this a few months ago. I'm bringing it back because there has been more discussion on this topic in recent weeks.

I appreciate BAPA's efforts in circulating a petition to let CDOT know that folks in our ward want Divvy.  How many people in the 19th ward have used Divvy in existing locations? How many understand how the system works?

Divvy and other on-demand bike share systems are designed for short point-to-point trips.  Bike share is intended as a form of short-distance public transportation, not for longer recreational rides. This type of system works best when the area covered is large, with many stations spaced 1/4 mile to 1/2 mile apart.

One may buy a 24-hour or 1-year membership, which includes an unlimited number of trips of 30 minutes or less within that membership period. From the time you remove a bike from a station dock, it costs no additional money unless you keep it for longer than 30 minutes. If you ride longer than 30 minutes, there is a small charge; increasing for a trip of 1 hour or more.  The price structure is intended to maximize the number of bikes available at any given time.

Divvy station map

Stations may be placed in front of businesses, libraries, school, at parks, in residential locations, etc.  Where business districts and other non-residential destinations are more than 1/4 mile to 1/2 mile apart, station placement in residential locations may be needed to effectively serve that part of the neighborhood. When stations are too far apart, they may not be convenient to your desired start location or destination, making bike share a less efficient form of transportation.

Much of what we have so far has been paid for by federal grant funding (such as CMAQ and other categories of transportation grant money) and sponsorship by Blue Cross Blue Shield. U.S. Rep. Dan Lipinski and U.S. Senator Dick Durbin have been strong allies, supporting bike, ped and transit funding in Congress.  

Continued improvements to bike infrastructure (bike lanes and neighborhood greenways), traffic education aimed at all ages, and better traffic enforcement are all needed for Divvy to succeed in the 19th ward.  Every day I see adults riding on the sidewalk (illegal for riders older than 12) on streets like Longwood Dr. I rarely see any traffic enforcement in the neighborhood, and I often observe drivers going 10+ mph over the speed limit on portions of Longwood, 111th and almost anywhere on Western. If more riders felt comfortable on local streets, Divvy would be much more successful in the 19th ward.

I encourage you to nominate Divvy station locations or vote in support of proposed locations through the Divvy web site.  Voting for specific locations adds substance to the BAPA petition.

We need to overcome anti-bike attitudes and dangerous driver behavior that are prevalent in some areas of the ward. Our alderman has publicly shown hostility to the idea of 19th ward bike lanes in recent years, as quoted in a Tribune article: "Several aldermen also called for better bike lanes ...Ald. Matthew O’Shea, 19th, took a different stance, telling Klein 'if you never put a bike lane in my ward, that’s too soon.'”

I and other south side bike advocates have talked with CDOT commissioner Rebekah Scheinfeld and deputy commissioner Luann Hamilton about demand for Divvy in far south side neighborhoods. They have repeatedly stated their intention to keep seeking grant funding for future expansion to broaden the Divvy service area to cover more of the city. I will keep asking until Divvy expansion to the 19th ward is planned and funded.

If we can achieve better infrastructure and less driver hostility towards cyclists, Divvy could be a very positive addition to the neighborhood.  I hope that funding and political will can come together to make that happen.