Author Archives: Ted Villaire

A Q&A with departing executive director

| Jul 11, 2019

After nearly nine years leading Active Trans, Ron Burke recently decided to step down.

As he moves on to his new position at Lyft, we decided to ask for his take on what’s been happening at Active Trans during the past decade.

Here are his thoughts about various topics, like the organization’s recent accomplishments and what’s in the cards for Active Trans’ future.

Active Trans: What accomplishments are you most proud of during your tenure as executive director of Active Trans?

Bike advocates celebrate new state funding at Friday rally

| Jun 20, 2019

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

 

MEDIA CONTACTS:
Clare McDermott
Active Transportation Alliance
(312) 216-0466
clare@activetrans.org

 

CHICAGO, June 20, 2019 — For the first time ever, Illinois’ long-term capital program includes dedicated funding for walking and biking projects. Active Transportation Alliance is celebrating this great achievement at its 28th Annual Chicago Bike Week Rally tomorrow morning!

What: Chicago Bike Week Rally
When: Friday June 21: 7am – 9am
Where: Daley Plaza (50 W.

Will you join Mayor Rockingham?

| May 8, 2019

Mayor Leon Rockingham wants to see his city of North Chicago become a better place for walking and biking.

He knows the residents of this Lake County community want safer streets and they want a healthier, cleaner place to live.

And like any community that wants to see these changes, he relies on the state to help.

The problem is that state lawmakers often seem to only care about people driving cars.

Revamped helpline supports walking & biking crash victims

| May 6, 2019

May 6, 2019
Media Contact:
Kyle Whitehead
Active Transportation Alliance
Government Relations Director
O: (312) 216-0473
kyle@activetrans.org

 

May 6, 2019: Chicago, Illinois — Warmer weather means more people choosing to walk and bike. It also means a greater need to help people who had the misfortune of experiencing a traffic collision while on foot or a bike.

To lend a hand to these people,

Rush hour bus lanes coming to Chicago Avenue 

| Apr 19, 2019

MEDIA STATEMENT

April 19, 2019

Media Contact:
Kyle Whitehead
Active Transportation Alliance
Managing Director of Public Affairs
(312) 216-0473
kyle@activetrans.org

 

Rush hour bus lanes coming to Chicago Avenue

Chicago, Ill: April 19, 2019 — Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel announced a new Bus Priority Zones program featuring upgrades to several of the busiest routes in the city, including Chicago Avenue,

Active Trans & Fifth Third team up ride on Lake Shore Drive

| Mar 28, 2019

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

MEDIA CONTACTS:
Clare McDermott, Active Transportation Alliance
(312) 216-0466
clare@activetrans.org

Larry Magnesen, Fifth Third Bank
(513) 535-8055
Larry.Magnesen@53.com

Active Transportation Alliance and Fifth Third Bank team up for 18th annual ride on Lake Shore Drive
21,000+ people on bikes to kick off summer at one of the nation’s best bike rides

CHICAGO,

Honoring local transportation champions

| Mar 20, 2019

Please give yourself a round of applause if you were one of the many people who provided support for our 2019 Awards Reception. Thanks to you, it was a great success!

And if you participated in the event’s paddle raise or silent auction, please take a bow.

A sincere thanks to our friend Jerome McDonnell of WBEZ, who served as the master of ceremonies as we honored REI,

A Q&A with Jeff Speck

| Feb 27, 2019

Jeff Speck is one of the leading voices in the nation for creating cities that are better places to walk, bike and use transit. He’s a city planner and author of several books, including, most recently, “Walkable City Rules: 101 Steps to Making Better Places.” This book was a followup to his very popular, “Walkable City: How Downtown Can Save America, One Step at a Time.”

We recently had an opportunity to ask Jeff his take on what’s needed to make Chicagoland a better place for biking and walking.

Chicago cyclists will brave the cold at Winter Bike Rally on Friday

| Feb 6, 2019

MEDIA ADVISORY

February 6, 2019

 

Media Contact:
Kyle Whitehead
Active Transportation Alliance
Managing Director of Public Affairs
D: (312) 216-0473
kyle@activetrans.org

 

 

Chicago cyclists will brave the cold at Winter Bike Rally on Friday
Advocates call for more bike lanes to support bicycling year-round

Chicago, Ill: February 5, 2019 — On Friday morning at Daley Plaza Chicago cyclists will rally to celebrate the growth of winter bicycling and push for more investment in biking and walking projects.

Top 10 biking, walking and transit stories of 2018

| Dec 21, 2018

There were plenty of attention-grabbing developments among the top active transportation stories of 2018.

Some of these developments helped make our streets safer and more inviting for people using active transportation, while others were intended to give more people access to better transportation options.

Here they are. If we missed an important story, please let us know in the comments below.

1. Lakefront Trail separation. After decades of trail advocacy by Active Trans and our community partners,