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Chicago’s first BRT to speed up east-west travel in Loop

Dec 14, 2015 | by Active Trans

Service will begin in the Loop Link corridor – Chicago’s first bus rapid transit project – on Sunday, December 20, the City of Chicago announced today. The Loop Link is an exciting improvement for the thousands of Chicagoans who ride the bus, bike and walk across the Loop every day.The addition of dedicated bus lanes rightly gives transit riders priority downtown while freeing up space for protected bike lanes and people walking.We urge the city to continue to improve the corridor by adding more features like prepaid boarding that will further speed up service.In addition to red dedicated bus lanes on Madison St. and Washington Blvd. connecting Ogilvie and Union Stations to Michigan Ave., the project includes eight new downtown bus...

Tags: Advocacy, Bicycling, Chicago Central, Planning, Walking

CTA plans to remove local bus stops on Ashland, Western

Nov 9, 2015 | by Active Trans

As part of an ongoing effort to speed up bus service on two of most popular bus routes in the city, CTA is preparing to remove some of the least-used stops on the #9 Ashland and #49 Western buses.The agency says 85 percent of all trips in the corridors will be unaffected by stop consolidation, and that the changes will save riders up to 7.5 minutes per trip. (See a map of the stops proposed to bemaintained and discontinued.)If approved by the CTA board, the changes would take effect in late December. Riders are encouraged to provide feedback on the proposal by email at [email protected] or phone at 1-888-YOUR-CTA.Speeding up local service is a worthy goal and the majority of...

Tags: Advocacy, Bicycling, Chicago West & Southwest Side, Planning, Walking

Bus Rapid Transit can be successful in the USA

Nov 2, 2015 | by Active Trans

Take note, Chicago, the Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority’s HealthLine is the highest rated BRT line in the United States and a prime example how it can be successful. The HealthLine runs more than 6 miles along Euclid Ave., connecting to other buses and major job centers between downtown and and University Circle. The 24-hour line uses dedicated bus lanes, has its own traffic signals and has a few stations located on road medians. People can easily connect to jobs, schools, hospitals and major cultural institutions. And their average commute times are reduced by 10 minutes. More people are able to explore car-free transportation options.The project made streetscape improvements to sidewalks and crossings and added bike lanes. Since its inception in 2008, Cleveland...

Tags: Advocacy, Bicycling, Walking

Kinzie Street protected bike lane will stay!

Sep 2, 2015 | by Active Trans

In a big win for Active Trans members and supporters, Chicago Department of Transportation (CDOT) officials confirmed the Kinzie Street protected bike lane will remain in place. Earlier this year, 42nd Ward Alderman Brendan Reilly introduced an ordinance that would require CDOT to temporarily remove the lane, which was Chicago's first protected bike lane and one of the most popular bike routes in the country. This much-loved bike route connects the North and West Sides of Chicago to downtown. Citing concerns about traffic congestion associated with the Wolf Point development, Ald. Reilly proposed installing a new bike lane on Grand Ave. as an alternative to Kinzie. However, that Grand Ave. bike lane never materialized, and it’s clear that people would continue...

Tags: Advocacy, Bicycling, Chicago North Side, Planning, transit, Walking

Restoring express bus should lead to building BRT on Ashland

Aug 18, 2015 | by Active Trans

On Tuesday CTA announced the restoration of express bus service on Ashland and Western Avenues during peak hours. The CTA ended express bus service on the #9 Ashland and #49 Western routes amid budget cuts in 2010. The #9 Ashland route is the most popular bus route in the system with 10 million boardings annually.Today's announcement is good news for transit riders who are forced to deal with overcrowding and slow, unpredictable trips on two of the most popular bus routes in the system. This decision should be a first step towards CTA building a true bus rapid transit (BRT) corridor on Ashland with dedicated bus lanes, improved stations, and enhanced sidewalks and medians.The CTA’s own analysis from 2013 shows restoring...

Tags: Advocacy, Bicycling, Planning, Walking

Rapid transit on Ashland is critical to our Transit Future

Aug 5, 2015 | by Active Trans

Everyone who travels around Chicago recognizes Ashland Avenue as one of the most important transportation corridors in the city and can see it’s long overdue for an upgrade.No matter what mode of transportation you’re using, trips are often frustratingly slow and unpredictable, especially during the morning and evening rush.Installing center-running dedicated bus lanes and granting buses traffic signal priority, as the city first proposed in 2013, would speed up many of those trips and offer fast, consistent transit service to more than 10 million riders every year.That’s why the Ashland Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) project is one of 10 potential rapid transit expansion projects featured in our Transit Future vision.If you live near Ashland, click here to tell the Cook...

Tags: Advocacy, Chicago North Side, Chicago South Side, Planning, Walking

Belmont Bypass is about more than just saving time

May 28, 2015 | by Active Trans

Transit systems as large as Chicago’s are complex networks where one seemingly minor issue can cause ripple effects throughout the entire system, slowing trains and frustrating riders all over city.For decades the Clark Junction on the North Side, where the CTA’s Red, Purple and Brown Line trains meet, has been one of those problem spots. Currently, trains on three of the four tracks in the area are forced to stop to allow northbound Brown Line trains to cross.This bottleneck results in 40 percent of weekday trains being delayed by as much as three minutes. The proposed Red-Purple Bypass would eliminate these delays by building a structure allowing Brown Line trains to pass over the top of existing tracks.The immediate time...

Tags: Advocacy, Bicycling, Chicago North Side, transit, Walking

Why removing the Kinzie bike lane is a bad idea

Apr 17, 2015 | by Active Trans

A bike network is only as strong as its weakest link, but a new proposal by 42nd Ward Alderman Brendan Reilly threatens to remove one of the most critical connections in Chicago’s growing network of protected bike lanes.In an ordinance introduced in the Chicago City Council, Ald. Reilly is seeking to force the Chicago Department of Transportation to remove the Kinzie Street protected bike lane, located between Des Plaines and Wells Streets in the River North neighborhood. If successful, the removal of the Kinzie protected bike lane would be a setback for Chicago, putting more people at risk of injury while doing nothing to alleviate congestion or move people more efficiently around downtown.Tell your alderman to oppose the removal of...

Tags: Advocacy, Bicycling, Chicago Central, Chicago North Side, transit, Walking

Time for Chicago to step up its Vision Zero efforts

Apr 14, 2015 | by Active Trans

Now that election season is over, it’s time for our leaders to follow through on their commitment to make our streets safer by developing an action plan to achieve Vision Zero in Chicago.Sign our petition calling on Chicago leaders to support a comprehensive Vision Zero strategy.Vision Zero is an international traffic safety movement built on the concept that no loss of life on our streets in acceptable and traffic crashes are not mere “accidents,” but preventable mishaps that can be reduced and ultimately eliminated with systemic changes. In 2012, Chicago adopted a Zero in 10 goal to eliminate traffic fatalities by 2022.This week a new organization launched to help Chicago and cities across the country achieve these important goals. The...

Tags: Advocacy, Bicycling, Planning, transit, Walking, zero vision

Vision Zero campaign aims to eliminate traffic fatalities

Mar 25, 2015 | by Active Trans

James Bausch had just bought an engagement ring for his girlfriend Amanda Annis when he biked by a crash scene.Less than an hour later, he learned the crushing news: that his girlfriend had been hit and killed at that scene by a driver who ran a red light.James told us that “nobody should have to go through what Mandy’s family and I went through in losing someone we loved to a preventable traffic crash.”Tragedies like this are not inevitable, are not acceptable, and should be not be forgotten in the debate about traffic safety and red light cameras.With this in mind, Active Trans was joined today by physicians, traffic safety experts and victims of traffic crashes in calling on Chicago’s...

Tags: Advocacy, Bicycling, Chicago Central, Chicago North Side, Chicago South Side, Chicago West & Southwest Side, transit, Walking

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