Recent Streetsblog CHICAGO posts about Active Transportation Alliance

John Discusses Active Trans’ Candidates Survey on WBEZ’s Morning Shift

By John Greenfield | Feb 11, 2015 | 4 Comments

This morning I pedaled down the Lakefront Trail to WBEZ’s studios at the end of Navy Pier to talk with “Morning Shift” host Tony Sarabia about a questionnaire the Active Transportation Alliance sent to all of the mayoral and aldermanic candidates. Listen to the full recording of our on-air conversation here. The survey asked the […]

Active Trans Wants Candidates to Commit to Working for Safer Streets

By Steven Vance | Jan 7, 2015 | 1 Comment

The Active Transportation Alliance released its 2015 election platform last week [PDF], featuring strategies to improve walking, biking, and transit in the region that they want candidates in the municipal elections to endorse. The Active Transportation Platform focuses on creating safer streets and providing better infrastructure for pedestrians, cyclists, and transit riders. The group hopes […]

Oak Park Getting Children’s Bike Fleet, “Kids on Wheels” Is Expanding

By John Greenfield | Dec 4, 2014 | 2 Comments

Last weekend, the Illinois Department of Transportation announced that Oak Park will receive a $12,000 federal Safe Routes to School grant to purchase a trailer, bicycles, helmets and supporting materials for its local Kids on Wheels education program. This will likely be the first time SRTS funds have been used for a fleet of training […]

Active Trans Plans 2015 Pedestrian Infra Campaign, Winter Bike Challenge

By John Greenfield | Nov 17, 2014 | 5 Comments

Last Thursday at the Active Transportation Alliance’s annual member meeting, director Ron Burke announced plans for next year, including campaigns for better downtown bike parking and more funding for pedestrian infrastructure and Safe Routes to School programs. The advocacy group will also continue lobbying for bike access on South Shore Line trains, and launch a […]

Active Trans Launches a New Crusade Against Dangerous Intersections

By John Greenfield | Oct 14, 2014 | 21 Comments

The Active Transportation Alliance was instrumental in creating the Transit Future campaign, with the goal of creating a dedicated funding source for regional transit. Now they’re also pushing for dedicated funding for pedestrian infrastructure, while raising awareness of Chicagoland’s many hazardous intersections, with their new Safe Crossings initiative. “It’s really important that we recognize the […]

There’s Still Time for Evanston Residents to Voice Support for Safer Biking

By John Greenfield | Sep 26, 2014 | 2 Comments

The Evanston City Council passed an update to the suburb’s bike plan, including plans for a network of protected lanes, on July 28. However, some of these bikeway projects have hit a roadblock, in the form of opposition from two aldermen and a handful of residents. On Tuesday, the Active Transportation Alliance launched an online […]

Active Trans Gets Building to Take Down Illegal “No Bike Parking” Sign

By John Greenfield | Aug 15, 2014 | 56 Comments

The Active Transportation Alliance has a long history of advocating for the rights of bicyclists, and occasionally they do so via direct action. A case in point was a recent incident in which an Active Trans helped reconnect a bicyclist with her ride after it was unfairly confiscated by security outside the American Medical Association […]

“Everything’s On The Table” For North Lake Shore Drive, So Share Your Ideas

By Jessica Papanek | Jul 16, 2014 | 7 Comments

Last week, city and state planners opened a call to the public to suggest potential elements for the North Lake Shore Drive reconstruction study, which they’re call “Redefine the Drive.” Almost a year ago, the Illinois and Chicago Departments of Transportation hosted a series of public meetings to gauge public support and solicit volunteers to join […]

Chicagoland’s Newest Bicycle Delivery Service Brings Safety to Suburban Kids

By Payton Chung | Jun 17, 2014 | 1 Comment

All around the country, and especially in suburban areas, safety conscious parents often keep their kids indoors, off what many fear to be dangerous streets. As a result, many fewer children are walking and cycling, with grave consequences for the nation’s health. The Active Transportation Alliance has long tried to offset this trend in a […]

Active Trans and AAA Chicago Launch Joint Road Safety Campaign

By John Greenfield | Jun 13, 2014 | 24 Comments

It’s tempting to be cynical about the Active Transportation Alliance and AAA Chicago’s new “same rights, same responsibilities” campaign, promoting safe behavior by people on bikes and people in cars. After all, cyclists and drivers don’t really have the same rights yet. Despite the growing Complete Streets movement, our nation and our city’s transportation systems […]

Bikin’ the Suburbs: Active Trans Peddling Next-Gen Bikeways Beyond Chicago

By John Greenfield | Jun 12, 2014 | 13 Comments

A recent survey conducted for the Illinois Bicycle Transportation Plan found that Illinoisans want bikeways that provide physical separation from motor vehicles, and believe these kind of “8-to-80” facilities are a key way to get more people to cycle. Protected bike lanes and bike boulevards, AKA neighborhood greenways, are becoming commonplace in the city of […]

Active Trans: At Least 125,000 Bike Trips In Chicago Every Day

By Steven Vance | Jun 11, 2014 | 3 Comments

A new study [PDF] commissioned by the Active Transportation Alliance put forth a “conservative” estimate that Chicagoans make nearly 125,000 bicycle trips each day for transportation, in addition to purely recreational trips. Almost 91,000, or 73 percent, of the trips are utilitarian – for shopping, errands, church, and doctor appointments. Active Trans said in a press […]

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