Help Streetsblog Chicago raise $50K to keep the site going strong in 2022
2:15 PM CDT on November 2, 2021
Buses on State Street last night. Streetsblog Chicago is looking into complaints about long waits between CTA buses and trains in recent months. Photo: John Greenfield
These are hopeful and exciting times in Chicago as – knock on wood – the COVID-19 pandemic seems to finally be winding down, and life is gradually returning to relative normalcy. That includes local public transportation, which is slowly regaining ridership, thanks in part to fare reductions and creative marketing schemes by the transit agencies. For example, it will be interesting to see what effect the CTA's plan to permanently slash pass prices and eliminate the 25-cent transfer fee will have on coaxing riders back onto trains and buses.
On the other hand, car commuting has been rising at a much faster pace. For example, the amount of downtown street-level parking use hit a whopping 160 percent of pre-pandemic rates earlier this fall. When you consider that Chicago traffic fatalities spiked by 45 percent last year, when there were much lower levels of driving, it's it's crucial for our city to be more proactive about preventing this dangerous trend towards greater auto-dependency from reaching carmageddon levels.
As such, Streetsblog Chicago's work advocating for safer and more efficient, equitable, and vibrant streets will be more important than ever in the coming year. That's why I'm once again asking for your help to raise $50,000 in smaller grants, ad sales, corporate sponsorships, and tax-deductible donations from readers. We are currently in the running for another major grant that, along with that $50K, would allow us to operate at full steam next year. It would be terrific if we can wrap up the campaign by New Year's Day so that all donors can take advantage of the tax benefits of end-of-year donations, although we'll extend the drive longer if necessary.
Your gift will help support Streetsblog Chicago's talented roster of staffers and freelancers. Co-editor Courtney Cobbs is a passionate advocate for reallocating street space to prioritize walking, biking, and transit as a strategy to improve safety and equity, and fight climate change. SBC cofounder Steven Vance is currently focused on running his excellent real estate news and data website Chicago Cityscape, but he's still working for us a few hours a week providing technical assistance and editorial advice. We are also currently in the process of recruiting a Latino Communities Reporter, and will likely announce the hire later this month.
Streetsblog writers Igor Studenkov, Richard Day, James Porter, John Greenfield, Courtney Cobbs, Amber Drea, and Mia Park at last month's outdoor reader meetup.
Here are a few of Streetsblog Chicago's advocacy efforts from the past year.
The successful push for a road diet with protected bike lanes on Logan Boulevard in the wake of two cyclist deaths at the Logan/ Western Avenue intersection.
Advocating for strategies to promote safety on the CTA that don't involve adding more guns to the system, such as transit ambassadors and increased funding for mental health services, the latter of which was recently included in Chicago's 2022 budget.
Defending Chicago's traffic camera program from unfair media attacks, while advocating for income-based fines to make the penalties less regressive, which also passed in the new budget.
In addition to editing Streetsblog Chicago, John writes about transportation and other topics for additional local publications. A Chicagoan since 1989, he enjoys exploring the city on foot, bike, bus, and 'L' train.
The transit advocacy group has questions about post-project train frequency, ADA access during a coming weekend shutdown, and missing Train Tracker coverage.