Steven Vance
Transportation planner and advocate. Steven also created Chicago Cityscape, a site that tracks neighborhood developments across the city.
Recent Posts
RTA Report: CTA Runs an Efficient Transit System Compared to Peer Agencies
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This week, rapid transit headaches in Washington, D.C. and the Bay Area highlighted the need for better maintenance of U.S. public transportation infrastructure. However, a new report from Chicagoland’s Regional Transportation Authority suggests that the CTA is in a little better shape than its peers. On Wednesday, the D.C. Metro system was completely shut down for 24 […]
Eyes on the Street: Concrete Pad for Bus Riders Installed in East Garfield
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People catching the Chicago Transit Authority’s 94-South California bus in East Garfield Park no longer have to wait for their ride in the dirt. While most CTA bus stops at least offer customers concrete to stand on, if not a bench or a shelter, not every rider has an appropriately designed waiting area. Until recently, three […]
Will CMAP Stop Prioritizing Increasing Road Capacity in Next Regional Plan?
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This is the second post in a two-part series on the upcoming ON TO 2050 regional plan. The first discussed public outreach goals for the new plan, and this one critiques its predecessor, GO TO 2040. The Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning has launched the process to create the successor to the regional comprehensive plan, […]
CMAP Launches Input Process for ON TO 2050, Chicago’s Next Regional Plan
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This is part one of a two-part series about ON TO 2050, the new comprehensive regional plan for Chicagoland. The official planning agency for the Chicagoland region is looking for your big ideas on what the region should look like – and how it could get there – in 2050. The Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning […]
Metra To Study Changes to Make its Fare Structure More “Creative”
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Metra, the regional commuter train operator, is seeking a consultant to develop “creative recommendations” on how to change its fare structure. The consultant would be in charge of finding the pros and cons of the current fare structure, comparing it to Metra’s commuter rail peers around the country, and building a model that allows Metra to […]
“Gray Line” Advocate Mike Payne Wants Rapid Service on Metra Electric Line
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The idea of Metra running its Hyde Park and South Chicago-bound Electric District line more like a CTA ‘L’ line may be gaining traction. If so, much of the credit goes to advocate Mike Payne, who has been tirelessly promoting the concept online and at public meetings. He calls this proposed rapid transit service as […]
Proposed Development Will Make Blue Line’s Grand Stop a TOD Hotspot
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Yet another developer is becoming prolific at creating mixed-used, transit-oriented developments. Mark Sutherland has proposed a new TOD building called 710 Grand, first revealed by Curbed in August, at 710 W. Grand Ave., one block east of the Grand Blue Line station in the River West neighborhood. This will be the third TOD building in Sutherland’s Wicker Park […]
City Will Select Engineering Team Next Month to Brainstorm O’Hare Express
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It looks like there may actually be some traction for Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s grand plan for express rail service to O’Hare Airport. Yesterday the city announced that by March it will select an engineering team to develop conceptual designs, including routes and terminal options. The CTA Blue Line is already an efficient way to travel […]
Metra Buying Old Trains, Squandering Opportunity to Change Ancient Service
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Metra wants to lock in its 66-year-old train car design for another 30 years. The agency, which hasn’t yet adopted a strategic plan that it started writing four years ago, seems to adhere to a policy of “if it ain’t broke don’t fix it.” The problem is that they don’t realize that things are indeed […]
Chicago Joins Vision Zero Network While Pedestrian Fatality Rate is in Flux
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At yesterday’s quarterly meeting of the Mayor’s Pedestrian Advisory Council, Chicago Department of Transportation commissioner Rebekah Scheinfeld mentioned the “somber” statistics that there was a significant increase in Chicago pedestrian fatalities in 2015 compared to previous years. There were 35 pedestrian deaths in the city in 2014, according to official Illinois Department of Transportation figures, and […]
Eyes on the Street: Eight TOD Buildings Under Construction Along Milwaukee
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The Chicago City Council passed the first comprehensive transit-oriented development ordinance in 2013, and the first buildings to take advantage of that law, which reduced the minimum parking requirement and allowed smaller or more units in buildings near CTA and Metra stations, are now being built. Some of them will open to new residents this […]
Developer of Bucktown TOD Grilled Over Lack of On-Site Affordable Housing
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Yesterday, the Chicago Plan Commission approved River North-based developer Vequity’s proposal for a new transit-oriented development in Bucktown. This puts the plan for a six-story building with 44 units and ten car parking spaces at 1920 N. Milwaukee Ave. on track for approval by the full City Council. However, it didn’t happen without a heated debate […]