By Madeline Makoul
As more people opt for bicycles for recreation, transportation, and quick trips, Chicago has its eyes set on a city-wide bike network.
This expansion comes as the number of bicyclists jumped due to the pandemic. Alex Perez, advocacy manager for Active Transportation Alliance, shared that, during the pandemic, many Chicagoans used bikes as a way to get outside. Chicago’s bicyclist community continues expanding quickly as residents adjust to changing conditions, Perez said, with people relying on bikes to navigate the city and Divvy bike rentals becoming more mainstream.
The City is investing to support cycling. Michael Claffey, spokesperson for the Chicago Department of Transportation (CDOT), said Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s Chicago Works infrastructure plan has funded a number of infrastructure elements across Chicago—including bicycling improvements. Claffey said a two-year proposed budget for 2021 and 2022 dedicates $17 million to bicycling improvements.
In addition, as part of Vision Zero Chicago, a CDOT initiative to “eliminate fatalities and serious injuries from traffic crashes,” CDOT dedicated $10 million from its budget to bicycle safety programs over two years, Claffey said.
“We have a total of 350 miles of on- and off-street bike lanes throughout the city, and the numbers have been going up steadily in recent years,” he noted. “We are adding 50 miles this year and hopefully 50 next year, and our goal is to add them where they are needed, where they make sense, and where they make connections inside neighborhoods as well as between neighborhoods.”
The City’s improvements and expansion
In early July, CDOT announced another phase of Divvy expansion to serve Chicago’s Southwest and Northwest Sides better. This initiative includes 3,500 new electric bicycles (e-bikes) and further investment in new bikeways.
CDOT continues to work with the community to identify areas that need bike lanes while coordinating with Divvy expansion areas.
“We are adding bike lanes to serve where Divvy bikes are going and where we feel they will be used,” Claffey said. “We want to encourage people to use the Divvys and to bike, so we are building out our network and expanding it to make biking easier, and we want to make it as widespread as possible.”
Perez called the Divvy expansion a “game changer” as the City works to bring Divvy service to more communities. Perez said this expansion, combined with new funding dedicated exclusively for walking and biking projects, will improve safety significantly.
Beyond citywide improvements through new Divvy coverage areas, Claffey said the South Loop currently has a project underway to add bike lanes, including lanes on an extension of Wells Street from Roosevelt Road to Chinatown and 18th Street.
“There will be a separated, raised bike lane on either side of Wells Street stretching from Roosevelt to Chinatown,” Claffey shared. “That won’t be opening until next year, but that will be a great addition to the Near South Side and South Loop’s bicycle network.”
Safety concerns
As the City continues expanding infrastructure for bicyclists, safety remains a top priority.
The Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning shared City of Chicago data on traffic accidents that resulted in fatalities and serious injuries for pedestrians and bicyclists, including bicycle messengers. The report found that, as the economy began to reopen in March and April 2021, serious injuries to cyclists and pedestrians rose 17%.
“We are pushing for more protected bike lanes to be installed in Chicago as a result of the increase and growth of bicycling, as well as a safety aspect,” Perez said. “As a result of the pandemic, driving has been more reckless—people drive faster and aren’t paying attention to the road as much, and that has caused a number of injuries for people that are walking and biking.”
Chicago Police denied a Gazette Chicago request for comment on Perez’s charges, and also denied a request for bicycle-related accident information.
Perez noted that, while many past improvements have focused on the Loop, the City needs to bring the same bike lane improvements and cycling upgrades to other neighborhoods.
“When you look at the identification of the high crash corridors, they are primarily South and West Side neighborhoods and streets where the infrastructure isn’t there, and it goes in line with how the driving culture is,” Perez explained. Bike lanes “could be a big game changer, and it’s something that hasn’t been done by the City because they focus infrastructure improvements on the downtown area, so we want to encourage them to look beyond downtown to improve bike lanes and sidewalks on the South and West sides.”
Divvy expansion involves several bike lane and protection options. Claffey said bike lanes throughout the city include barrier-protected lanes, buffered lanes (conventional bicycle lanes paired with a designated buffer space separating the bike lane from motor vehicle traffic), and neighborhood greenways, depending on the best approach for the location.
“There’s no one size fits all,” Claffey said. “We add concrete protection where we can, but sometimes there’s not enough room so we use a buffered bike lane. There’s no one solution, and there has to be buy-in from the community. It takes community engagement for it to be accepted, but they can all be a major safety improvement.”
As the City seeks to eliminate traffic-related deaths and injuries, including those to bicyclists and bicycle messengers, the Vision Zero initiative is working to educate bikers. According to Claffey, Chicago SAFE (Streets Are For Everybody) ambassadors are offering learn-to-ride bicycle classes, using Divvy bikes to help those new to bicycling or who need to brush up on their skills. Ambassadors share safety tips, helping Chicagoans get more comfortable riding.
Claffey thinks “safety in numbers” helps, too. More people riding bikes raises awareness that bicyclists are on the streets, he said.
Divvy plays a key role, Claffey noted. “Because we have more Divvy bikes, there are more people riding, and it sends the message that bikes are part of the transportation ecosystem. Under Vision Zero, it’s a goal to reach no serious crashes, fatalities, or serious injuries, and that’s what we are striving for as we add bike lanes and have more people riding bikes. It will help reduce the number of crashes to hopefully reach our goal of zero.”
A push for more
With around $27 million in dedicated funding for bicycling improvements, cycling advocates such as Perez seek to make Chicago’s protected lanes network more cohesive.
Perez said connecting bike lanes and filling any gaps will help make the city safer not only for those using bicycles to commute or as part of their jobs but for recreational cyclists.
Active Transportation Alliance “has been pushing the City to create protected bike lanes with a connected network, making sure you can get to one end of the city from the other without the bike lane having any gaps,” Perez said. “When we look at the type of bike lanes that are being built in Chicago for safety and making them user friendly for all ages and abilities, protected bike lanes are kind of the gold standard.”
Perez explained that, of all the City’s miles of bike lanes, only a little more than 25 miles feature protected bike lanes. Active Transportation advocates for a protected bike lane network on Chicago’s spoke routes: Milwaukee Avenue, Clark Street, Lake and Randolph Streets, State Street and Wabash Avenue, Vincennes Avenue, Archer Avenue, and South Chicago Avenue. The organization wants Chicago to install ten more miles of protected bike lanes on these spoke routes by 2023 and another 30 miles of lanes by 2026.
Perez and Active Transportation Alliance recognize implementing bike lanes requires multiple steps and involves more than just identifying what streets need them. Streets need a certain width to accommodate protected lanes, and area aldermen must approve the lanes. Perez noted aldermanic approval presents a big barrier to enjoying a network of interconnected bike lanes, as one ward may have them and another may deny them.
“When it comes to people taking action and wanting a safer infrastructure where they live, definitely reach out to local aldermen,” he advised.
Claffey echoed Perez’s push for community involvement. He said CDOT is working with communities on further Divvy and bike lane expansion, including asking people where they want Divvy stations and where bike lanes are needed to support cycling’s many benefits—from commuting, to running errands, to connecting to other neighborhoods.
“The idea is that, by making Divvy bikes available, we encourage people to use them and also, maybe, they’ll be inspired to get their own bike and get out there,” Claffey said. “Biking is a great form of exercise and can also replace vehicle trips, and the goal is to replace car trips and reduce our carbon footprint.”
Learn more about Active Transportation Alliance at https://activetrans.org/. To explore CDOT’s work, check out https://www.chicago.gov/city/en/depts/cdot.html. To see Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning’s COVID-related traffic reports, visit https://www.cmap.illinois.gov/updates/all/-/asset_publisher/UIMfSLnFfMB6/content/covid-affects-transportation-update.
City encourages bicycle messenger employment and safety
The City’s cycling improvements and bicycle lane expansion also will help bicycle messengers.
According to the Chicago Department of Transportation (CDOT), “Bicycle messengers, also known as bike couriers, are people who work carrying and delivering items by bicycle. Chicago’s bicycle messenger companies employ more than 300 bicyclists who make an estimated 1.1 million deliveries each year. The City of Chicago encourages more use of bicycle messengers and encourages bicycle messengers to ride safely and responsibly.”
According to CDOT, bicycle messengers “can often travel faster than automobiles stuck in congested city traffic,” and they “help relieve pollution, congestion, and gridlock by not adding to…the number of cars on the road.”
Cycling and bike lane improvements form part of the City’s strategy for “streamlining the delivery process to make bicycle messenger services faster and therefore more attractive to use; expanding services to new markets; establishing safer conditions for bicycle messengers to help ensure a healthy working environment; and encouraging bicycle messengers to ride safely and avoid riding behaviors that endanger themselves, pedestrians, and motorists,” according to CDOT.
Companies operating as bicycle messenger services must have a bicycle messenger service license, granted by the Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection.
Mayor Lori Lightfoot hopes to add 100 miles of new bike lanes to city streets.
The City started upgrading bicycle infrastructure in 1991, as then-Mayor Richard M. Daley was a fan of bicycle messengers. “Bicycle couriers provide a valuable service to firms seeking ways to reduce costs and improve their efficiency, delivering goods in a timely manner,” Daley said, noting “bicycle couriers endure difficult weather and congested traffic, often working long hours.”
Daley established an annual Bicycle Messenger Appreciation Day in 2007. The City has scheduled this year’s celebration Saturday, Oct. 9.
For CDOT, go to www.chicago.gov/city/en/depts/cdot.html. For the department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection, go to www.chicago.gov/city/en/depts/bacp.html.
—William S. Bike