Recent Streetsblog CHICAGO posts about Technology

Strap This Device to Your Bike and Measure the Air Quality of Your Ride

By Steven Vance | Mar 22, 2013 | 14 Comments

One aspect people like about the Chicago Crash Browser is looking up crashes along the route they bike to see if there are areas that should be avoided. What if you could also avoid routes that have high pollution, are especially noisy, or lack good street lighting? A group from the School of the Art […]

You Might Already Be Ready to Use Ventra

By Steven Vance | Mar 18, 2013 | 96 Comments

Ventra, you may have heard, is the new fare payment system for Chicago Transit Authority and Pace. (Metra will not be joining the Ventra system, and is currently testing other fare payment methods.) CTA is switching to Ventra to save $5 million per year on maintaining outdated fare collection technology, according to spokesperson Lambrini Lukidis. […]

Mapping the Potential for Development Near ‘L’ Stations

By Steven Vance | Feb 19, 2013 | 6 Comments

Do Chicago’s zoning rules position the city for transit-oriented growth? Last week, Andrew Salzberg, a D.C.-based transportation consultant who works for the World Bank, posted a link on Twitter to a new map he’s created that overlays CTA rail lines and stations with how much development is allowed. It’s an attempt to show if zoning […]

Adopt-A-Sidewalk, Chicago’s Next Big Push to Get Snow Off Streets

By Steven Vance | Jan 25, 2013 | 4 Comments

If the snow we’re going to get tonight sticks around, we’re gonna have to shovel it. But what if you aren’t home or you need some help? Enter Adopt-A-Sidewalk, a website that came out of a collaboration between the City of Chicago and local developers. Adopt-A-Sidewalk lets users mark or “claim” the sidewalks that they plan […]