Tag Archives: transit

John LaPlante’s Complete Streets legacy

Apr 8, 2020 | by Active Trans

It was a great loss to the world of sustainable transportation when John LaPlante died in March of COVID-19. As someone who worked with John over a number of years, I wanted to provide a more detailed account of his impact locally and nationally. You might not realize it, but you’ve likely benefited from John's efforts to improve street design and safety for pedestrians, bicyclists, and transit users. And the effects of his work can be felt not just in Chicago. After earning transportation engineering degrees from IIT and Northwestern, John started out as a summer intern in the Chicago Department of Public Works Bureau of Street Traffic in the early 1960s. He was a multimodal planner before it was...

Tags: Bicycling, Chicago, transit, Walking

Read More

Supporting the transportation needs of essential workers

Apr 7, 2020 | by Lynda Lopez

As an organization that advocates for walking, biking, and public transit to create healthy, sustainable, and equitable communities, this moment necessitates rethinking and adapting to changing needs. This means not necessarily supporting policies or ideas that we embrace in the non-COVID-19 world. We believe in the ability for people to travel freely, but we know this moment requires taking a step back and adjusting that lens we normally use for viewing these issues. We want to see policies that enhance safety for essential workers but do not have the potential to worsen the public health crisis. It is at that intersection that we must view our decisions as mobility and transit advocates. This week, we learned that 70 percent of...

Tags: Bicycling, Lakefront Trail, transit, Walking

Read More

Federal stimulus bill includes $1.6 billion for Chicagoland transit

Mar 27, 2020 | by Kyle Whitehead

Transit advocates in Chicago and cities across the country spoke up and Congress heard our call to provide emergency operating assistance for public transit during the COVID-19 crisis. The COVID-19 stimulus bill passed by the U.S. House of Representatives Friday includes $25 billion for transit, including $1.6 billion for Chicagoland agencies. Reports indicate CTA will get approximately $800 million, Metra will get more than $400 million, and Pace will get about $100 million. Initial drafts of the bill that surfaced last week didn’t include any assistance for transit. In response, Transportation for America led a national effort of advocates, transit agencies, and elected officials who pushed back. Active Trans activated hundreds of supporters in the Chicago area, who generated nearly...

Tags: Advocacy, Back on the Bus, Chicago, transit, Transit Equity

Read More

Transit operators need stronger protections

Mar 27, 2020 | by Julia Gerasimenko

As of March 30, six CTA bus and train operators have tested positive for COVID-19. A Pace bus driver has also tested positive for COVID-19. There are likely many more who have the virus, and we expect to hear more confirmations of operators testing positive in the coming days and weeks. These diagnoses beg the question of what steps are being done to contain and mitigate the spread of the virus among essential workers operating buses and trains. And what’s being done after an operator tests positive? We must protect transit workers who are on the front lines of this crisis to save lives and keep our trains and buses running. As more transit operators test positive for COVID-19, it's...

Tags: Fair Fares Chicagoland, transit

Read More

Tell Congress any COVID-19 stimulus bill must include public transit

Mar 20, 2020 | by Kyle Whitehead

Initial drafts of the COVID-19 stimulus bill being prepared in Washington, D.C., don't include any mention of public transit. As public transportation loses riders at levels unseen before, the transit agencies are already starting to make cuts in service. Major cuts in service and shutting down transit lines would be devastating for people who continue to rely on transit in their everyday lives during the pandemic. Transit agencies in the Chicago area and cities across the country need emergency assistance NOW to keep their systems running and clean. Thousands of essential workers like healthcare professionals and grocery store clerks rely on buses and trains to get to work. Many Chicagoans rely on transit to get to essential businesses like grocery...

Tags: Advocacy, Chicago, transit, Transit Equity

Read More

Continuing to push for safe, just, and livable streets

Mar 19, 2020 | by Melody Geraci

We hope you and your loved ones are staying healthy during these deeply unsettling times. Like countless other organizations, the coronavirus pandemic will undoubtedly have a major effect on the work we do over the coming weeks and months. For starters, we have postponed all of our in-person meetings, our trainings, and other events planned for coming weeks. Our staff is working from home and we’re encouraging them to take the steps necessary to protect themselves and their loved ones for the foreseeable future. While Fifth Third Bike the Drive remains set for Sunday, May 24, we’re looking at contingency plans if it needs to be rescheduled. Like every nonprofit organization right now, we’re reflecting on the value of our...

Tags: Advocacy, Bicycling, transit, Walking

Read More

Public transit is critical to Chicago’s COVID-19 response

Mar 19, 2020 | by Kyle Whitehead

Emergency funding is needed to keep Chicago's public transit system running throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. Thousands of essential workers like healthcare professionals and grocery store clerks rely on buses and trains to get to work. Many Chicagoans living in historically marginalized communities rely on transit to get to essential businesses like grocery stores and pharmacies. Transit is critical to the Chicago region's public health response to COVID-19. Bus and train service must be maintained for the healthcare system and local economies to continue to function. Chicago Public Health Commissioner Dr. Allison Arwady calls public transportation “an essential service,” noting how crucial it is for important workers to get to their jobs. Reducing or ending transit service would limit the mobility...

Tags: Advocacy, Back on the Bus, Chicago, public transit, transit, Transit Equity

Read More

More police on transit doesn’t make everyone feel safe

Mar 4, 2020 | by Julia Gerasimenko

Last Friday a Chicago Police Officer shot a CTA customer who was being detained for moving between train cars — a minor nonviolent infraction — at the Grand Red Line station. Thankfully, the shooting victim is no longer in critical condition and the charges have been dropped. Earlier that same day, Mayor Lori Lightfoot, along with CTA Board President Dorval Carter and interim Chicago Police Superintendent Charlie Beck, announced a new security plan for the CTA system at a press conference held at the Roosevelt Red Line station. The new security plan was spurred by a recent uptick in reported violent crimes on the CTA. The plan includes deploying 50 additional police officers to patrol CTA trains and buses, in...

Tags: Back on the Bus, Fair Fares Chi, Fair Fares Chicagoland, transit

Read More

All-door boarding coming to select CTA bus routes

Feb 25, 2020 | by Julia Gerasimenko

If you ride the bus in Chicago, you’ve probably had this experience: You're boarding a bus while a line of people fish Ventra cards or loose change from the depths of their bags. As a result, the embarkation process feels like it's moving at snail's pace. While this may sometimes seem like an unavoidable reality of riding the bus, the truth is there is a solution. To that end, the CTA announced it will be piloting what's called "all-door boarding" along the Jeffrey Jump (#J14) and University of Chicago Hospitals Express (#192) bus routes for a six-month period starting in June. CTA will install Ventra card readers at the back door on 30 articulated buses to allow for all-door boarding....

Tags: Back on the Bus, Chicago, Chicago South Side, transit

Read More

Streetsblog Chicago shines a light on sustainable transportation

Feb 21, 2020 | by Maya Norris

The Active Transportation Alliance isn’t the only place in town to get the latest news on walking, biking, and transit issues. Sustainable transportation advocates in the Chicago region often turn to Streetsblog Chicago as their go-to resource for thoughtful analysis, accurate information, and daily updates on the walking, biking, and public transit scene in the city. The online news organization’s nuanced and insightful reporting has not only helped to make sustainable transportation issues more accessible to a broader audience, but has also helped to amplify Active Trans’ work. Active Trans will honor Streetsblog Chicago with our 2020 Nonprofit Leadership Award at the Active Trans 2020 Awards Reception on March 5 at 1871. Streetsblog Chicago is one of three recipients that...

Tags: Bicycling, transit, Walking

Read More