Eyes on the Street

The steps, broken pavement, and roller coaster ramps at the southwest corner of Kinzie Street and Clark Street were all repaired recently. The construction was originally supposed to wrap up by spring 2013, but didn't finish until December. The six-month long construction was unusually complex, according to 42nd Ward Alderman Reilly's newsletter.

This week's snow storm -- which is still coming down -- has made a lot of sidewalks tough to navigate, but here's one case that's worse than most.

Prior to the Divvy bike-share launch, some folks argued that the program would be a waste of money because no one would use it during Chicago’s long winter. However, even during this week's cold, snowy weather, the fairly common sight of bundled-up riders on the baby-blue bikes proved the system is still getting plenty of use.

Bicycle riders should be generally pleased with the new Wells Street Bridge, which opened to traffic early this morning for the first time since reconstruction began a year ago. Most of the slippery metal grate bridge decking -- including the entire bike lane on the span -- has been filled in with concrete, providing a safe riding surface.

This weekend might be the Chicago Department of Transportation’s last hurrah for building bike lanes before the construction season ends. The molten plastic striping doesn’t properly adhere to asphalt at temperatures under 50 degrees Fahrenheit, so the last several days of frigid weather put a halt to CDOT’s efforts to install 20.7 more miles of buffered and protected lanes before the deep-freeze sets in.

The Chicago Department of Transportation is currently hoping to install up to 20.7 more miles of buffered and protected bike lanes before the close of the construction season. However, since thermoplastic striping doesn’t properly bond to asphalt at under 50 degrees Fahrenheit, the current freeze is delaying these projects, so it’s unlikely all of them will be completed this year.

After Streetsblog reported on Leopardo Construction's poor pedestrian accommodations during construction on Lawrence Avenue next to the Ravenswood station, where the contractor is building a Mariano's grocery store, a company representative wrote to say that building a temporary walkway in the road wasn't feasible. Soon after, however, a temporary walkway was added.