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A close, controversial Council vote to borrow $830M for infrastructure: Should safe streets advocates have a glass-half-full POV?
Streetsblog Chicago is a sustainable transportation news and advocacy website, not a publication that typically covers finance. So it's not really my role to opine on whether it was a smart fiscal decision for the City Council to approve an $830 million bond deal to pay for transportation infrastructure. But let's look at how the narrow 26-23 vote went down last Wednesday; some arguments against and for the financing by alders; and reactions from walk/bike/transit boosters.
March 3, 2025
The CTA reveals the final plans for the path and public space under the new Red and Purple tracks. Will it have safe street crossings?
This week, the CTA released the final design concepts for a pedestrian path and other new amenities on a 1.3-mile segment under Red and Purple tracks, between the Lawrence and Bryn Mawr stations in Uptown and Edgewater. At the second of two community meeting this week, held last night at Truman College, 1945 W. Wilson, attendees seemed generally satisfied with the design.
February 27, 2025
Today’s Headlines for Wednesday, February 26
• "Why a Plan to Borrow $830M to Repair Streets, Sidewalks, Bridges Touched Off a Political Firestorm" (WTTW)
February 26, 2025
Today’s Headlines for Thursday, February 13
• CTA "Will Pilot Automatic Detection System on Rail Right-of-Way" to detect trespassing on tracks, and prevent injuries and service delays
February 13, 2025
Never mind the naysayers: NYC-style congestion pricing would be great for Chicago
By practically all accounts, New York City's congestion pricing initiative, which launched on January 5, is doing precisely what it's supposed to: easing traffic congestion. You can get up to speed on exactly how the program is designed, from this explainer by Streetblog NYC's Dave Colon.
February 12, 2025
Today’s Headlines for Wednesday, February 12
• Could CDOT Commissioner Tom Carney get fired as part of Mayor Johnson's plan to clean house? (Sun-Times)
February 12, 2025
Today’s Headlines for Tuesday, February 11
• Transportation committee to consider measure to require CTA president nominees to testify in front of alderpeople (Daily Line)
February 11, 2025
Tribune fact check double-header: Exactly which bikeways did they say replaced car lanes? And did suburban Metra fares really go up last year?
On Thursday the Chicago Tribune yet ran another editorial about construction on the Kennedy Expressway inconveniencing drivers that calls for some discussion. That reminded me that I'd been planning to update Streetsblog readers about a similar editorial last December that we'd asked the newspaper to correct. Let's talk about one, and then the other.
February 7, 2025
Let’s debunk Edgewater Glen Association’s scary post claiming the Granville Avenue Traffic Safety project would “cause chaos”
Update 2/12/25, 1:30 PM: The Chicago Department of Transportation will host another public meeting on this project Thursday, February 13, 6-7 p.m. on Zoom. Register at bit.ly/granville2025.
February 6, 2025
Today’s Headlines for Monday, February 3
• Trucker killed woman, 76, Saturday morning near Madison/Western on Near West Side, a mile from where driver killed Halyna Hudzan, 66 on 1/24 (ABC)
February 3, 2025
