Recent Streetsblog CHICAGO posts about Brendan Reilly

Signs and markings on the offramp from the Lakefront Trail to the riverwalk encourage people to bike to the promenade, but other signs threaten prosecution if they ride there. Photo: John Greenfield

Eyes on the Street: Mixed Messages on the Riverwalk

By John Greenfield | Oct 15, 2018 | 14 Comments

While signs and markings on the Lakefront Trail lead cyclists to the riverwalk, signs at the promenade warn that they'll be prosecuted if they ride there, even though it's still legal to do so.

The City Has Posted Signs Threatening Prosecution for Biking on Riverwalk

By John Greenfield | Oct 10, 2018 | 19 Comments

Unless Alderman Reilly's proposed ordinance passes, which hasn't happened yet, you have every right to ride your bike (courteously, of course) on the riverwalk.

Between 2013 and 2016, only 1.2 percent of Illinois car/pedestrian crashes involved a person on foot using a cell phone. Image: Active Trans

Active Trans Study Vindicates Reilly’s Opposition to “Distracted Walking” Ordinance

By John Greenfield | Oct 4, 2018 | 20 Comments

The downtown alderman was right: Dangerous drivers, not distracted pedestrians are largely to blame for traffic crashes.

Drivers Struck 296 People in Reilly’s Ward in the Last Year, No Reported Riverwalk Crashes

By John Greenfield and Steven Vance | Oct 3, 2018 | 6 Comments

The car-pedestrian crashes included 48 cases with incapacitating injuries, but there have been no media reports of serious bike/ped crashes in the ward. So why is Alderman Reilly focused on banning bikes on the riverwalk?

Balbo and Michigan. Photo: John Greenfield

Aldermen Introduced an Ordinance to Rename Balbo Drive for Ida B. Wells

By John Greenfield | May 23, 2018 | No Comments

Some Italian-American community members say they'll continue to fight the name change.

Workers complete Phase I of the flyover, between Ohio Street and the Ogden Slip. Photo: John Greenfield

Official: Reilly Jumped the Gun on Navy Pier Flyover Work

By John Greenfield | Oct 10, 2017 | 10 Comments

A recent announcement by downtown alderman Brendan Reilly that the second phase of Navy Pier Flyover construction was about to begin was premature, according to a city official. In an email to residents on Friday, Reilly stated that Phase II of the $60 million bike/ped bridge, the section between the Ogden Slip and the Chicago […]

Lack of Concrete Protection for Rebuilt Kinzie Lanes Is a Missed Opportunity

By John Greenfield | Oct 14, 2016 | 12 Comments

With apologies to The Who, “Meet the new lanes / The same as the old lanes.” Chicago cyclists have experienced a lot of highs and lows with the Kinzie protected bike lanes. Unfortunately, there’s a new setback. The city has announced the current reconstruction of the lanes won’t involve adding concrete protection, which represents a […]

Reilly to CDOT: Please Fix Dearborn Protected Bike Lane’s Lousy Pavement

By John Greenfield | Aug 10, 2016 | 8 Comments

Downtown alderman Brendan Reilly is known as the man who tried to get the Kinzie protected bike lanes removed, but he recently racked up some bike lane karma. Shaun Jacobsen, the urban planner behind the transportation blog Transitized, wrote to Reilly to about poor pavement conditions on the Dearborn two-way protected bike lane. The alderman […]

Ald. Reilly Has a Responsible Approach to Off-Street Parking

By Steven Vance | Nov 6, 2015 | 15 Comments

When it comes to parking management in Chicago, there have been a couple of encouraging developments recently. In September, City Council passed a beefed-up revision of the transit-oriented development ordinance, which makes it easier than ever to build dense, parking-lite developments near train stations. And, recently, Ald. Brendan Reilly (42nd) made some very sensible statements […]

O’Shea Can You See? Formerly Anti-Bike Alderman Now Wants Divvy

By John Greenfield | Oct 9, 2015 | 2 Comments

DNAinfo’s Ted Cox provided a nice write-up of an entertaining discussion of bike issues that took place at yesterday’s City Council budget hearings. You should definitely check out the original article, but here’s some additional background and analysis. It’s great that aldermen on the Far South Side are clamoring for Divvy stations in their wards. […]

CDOT & Reilly Reach a Consensus on Kinzie: The Protected Lanes Will Remain

By John Greenfield | Sep 1, 2015 | 10 Comments

There’s some great news about Chicago’s oldest protected bike lanes. Yesterday, the Chicago Department of Transportation confirmed that the Kinzie Street PBLs will stay in place for the foreseeable future, despite an effort by downtown alderman Brendan Reilly to force CDOT to remove them. The department installed the Kinzie lanes in 2011, not long after Mayor Rahm […]

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