Recent Streetsblog CHICAGO posts about Mike Amsden

Eyes on the Street: New Protected and Buffered Bike Lanes on Vincennes

By John Greenfield | Oct 29, 2013 | 5 Comments

Our extended New Bikeways Week wraps up today with a look at the 2.65-mile stretch of new protected and buffered lanes that the Chicago Department of Transportation recently installed on Vincennes Avenue from 84th Street to 103rd Street. Vincennes, a diagonal road leading downtown from the Far Southwest Side, is designated as a bike-priority Spoke […]

Eyes on the Street: Upgraded Bike Lanes on Kedzie in Logan Square

By John Greenfield | Oct 21, 2013 | 7 Comments

Here at Streetsblog, we’re not shy about pointing out when we feel a local politician is on the wrong side of a transportation issue, but we’re also happy to spread the word when an alderman changes his or her stance and becomes friendlier to biking, walking, and/or transit. That seems to be the case with […]

ThinkBike Challenges Chicagoans to Think Beyond Bike Lanes

By Steven Vance | Oct 2, 2013 | 12 Comments

Last Thursday, Dutch “mobility advisor” Sjors van Duren stood by the Lakefront Trail, pointed to the block of Monroe Street between Columbus and Lake Shore Drive, and asked, “What is the function of this street?” The answer, it was agreed, is to distribute automobiles between the Loop and Lake Shore Drive. Van Duren works for the Arnhem […]

Eyes on the Street: New Buffered Bike Lanes on Madison Street

By John Greenfield | Sep 10, 2013 | 8 Comments

Well-designed protected bike lanes are generally far superior to buffered lanes, because it provides actual physical protection from moving cars, not just paint on the road, which encourage more risk-averse people to ride. On the other hand, if protected lanes are off the table, well-executed buffered lanes are nothing to sneeze at. The Chicago Department […]

Will Disappearing Bike Lanes Be a Problem With This Year’s Installations?

By John Greenfield | Sep 9, 2013 | 9 Comments

The Chicago Department of Transportation is currently hustling to construct 35 miles of buffered and protected bike lanes this year, which would bring us to a total of 65 miles of lanes installed under Mayor Rahm Emanuel. The department hopes to reach 100 miles by May 2015. However, in the rush to build a large […]

An Update on CDOT’s Bikeway Construction

By John Greenfield | Aug 30, 2013 | 20 Comments

We’re currently in the midst of a bike lane building boom. Earlier this year the Chicago Department of Transportation completed groundbreaking protected lanes on Milwaukee from Kinzie to Elston, which involved removing about 50 percent of the parking spaces. Buffered lanes were striped on Wells from Chicago to North. Recently CDOT completed buffered lanes on […]

Mix of Protected and Buffered Bike Lanes Slated for Busy Broadway

By Steven Vance | Aug 1, 2013 | 48 Comments

The Chicago Department of Transportation will redesign Broadway between Montrose and Foster, a mile-long stretch that’s currently a very car-centric four- to five-lane road. The street is so inhospitable that one resident at a public meeting Wednesday night said she doesn’t drive, walk, or bike on it. The agency failed to make a “complete street” […]

How to Create Protected Bike Lanes That Confident Cyclists Will Enjoy Riding

By John Greenfield | Mar 20, 2013 | 16 Comments

As Steven Vance wrote recently, protected bicycle lanes will be crucial for boosting Chicago’s bike mode share because they attract the “interested but concerned” set that doesn’t yet feel comfortable riding on city streets. But as the city installs protected lanes on roadways that are already popular bike routes, such as Milwaukee Avenue, it will […]

Highlights From the March Mayor’s Bicycle Advisory Council Meeting

By John Greenfield | Mar 15, 2013 | 6 Comments

The quarterly Mayor’s Bike Advisory Council meetings, held on the 11th floor of City Hall, are an excellent way to get up to speed on local cycling initiatives. At Wednesday’s meeting Mike Amsden, who manages the Chicago Department of Transportation’s bikeways projects, discussed the agency’s proposal to build protected bike lanes on Milwaukee Avenue between […]

CDOT Considers Bold Steps to Make Room for Protected Lanes on Milwaukee

By John Greenfield | Mar 5, 2013 | 50 Comments

The Chicago Department of Transportation has added many miles of protected and buffered bike lanes across the city, but it can be challenging to find space for protected lanes on the streets where they are needed the most. CDOT has implemented “road diets” on several streets, replacing excess car lanes with protected lanes, which has […]