Earlier this month I wrote about disturbing violent incidents on the last two editions of the Chicago Critical Mass bike parade/protest/party. The often-huge ride gathers on the last Friday of the month at Daley Plaza, 50 W. Washington St.
I'd credit the event with having a having a huge influence on making our city more bike-friendly over the last 27 years of monthly rides. That included helping me land a previous job as a consultant to the Chicago Department of Transportation, arranging the installation of over 3,500 bicycle parking racks citywide.
So it was very worrisome in May and June when enraged drivers confronted CCM "corkers", folks standing with their bikes at intersections to block cross traffic from entering the junction, allowing the entire group of riders to safely pass. These conflicts on the Near North Side and in Uptown, respectively, escalated into full-blown fistfights, and eventually pepper spray was (perhaps justifiably) used against the assailants. Terrifyingly, the Uptown brawl ended when one of the car passengers pulled out a gun and fired warning shots in the air.
In my Streetsblog essay I wrote, "If a motorist starts threatening physical violence, or angrily gets out of their car... the only sensible approach for corkers is to shout warnings to other Critical Mass participants. Then they should move their bikes out of the way, and allow the ballistic motorist to pass through the ride, without hurting innocent people."
In retrospect, I should have added that if the corkers' goal is "to prevent people from getting injured and killed," as one commenter noted, additional steps may be needed to help prevent the furious driver from running anyone over. It might be appropriate to first say something like, "Hold on for a second, and we'll let you through" to the driver in an effort to de-escalate, clear a path for them, and then let them proceed.
At any rate – and let the record stand that I take absolutely zero credit for this – last Friday's Mass was thankfully almost (see tweet below) completely violence-free. I completed most of the ride and tried to observe interactions, or the lack of them, between corkers and drivers.
Earlier this month, a fellow longtime CCM participant told me a factor in the recent melees was Massers who "have a history of antagonizing drivers." Fortunately, I saw no evidence of that at Friday's event. To their credit, none of the cyclists I saw blocking cross-traffic seemed to be intentionally provoking motorists, and some of the corkers even thanked the waiting drivers for their patience.
That's not to say that Friday's CCM ride could be confused for a Scouting America bicycle jamboree. The final route map included previously unannounced forays onto the Ohio Street feeder ramp, the Kennedy Expressway, and Lower Wacker Drive.
The first two are illegal to ride bicycles on, while the latter is a high-speed lower-level road that is anything but bike-friendly. (However, I used to use Lower Wacker as a shortcut and rain shelter during my bike messenger days).
Certainly the question of whether these dangerous, often-deadly highways are appropriate places to take Critical Mass is subject to debate. But I know at least one wild-eyed radical who has passionately argued that the Ohio Feeder should be demolished and replaced with a more bike/walk/transit-friendly boulevard: former Milwaukee Mayor John Norquist. He pulled off a similar project in Cream City years ago, and currently lives in Chicago's Rogers Park neighborhood.
Below is a gallery of some of my photos from Friday's journey.
I had to leave the ride at Lower Wacker / Lower Michigan for another engagement. But participant Juan Dominguez told me the rest of ride south on Columbus Driver to Roosevelt Road to 12th Street Beach went without incident. "The end point was fantastic. A great spot for people who want to swim off the breakwater or the sandy beach with a beautiful view of the skyline."
That was definitely a well-deserved finale for all the Chicago Critical Mass riders who increased the peace this month by keeping any interactions with drivers reasonably civil. Let's keep up the good work on future rides.
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