Division Street

Redesigning streets to be more walk/bike/transit-friendly is key for avoiding a spike in driving as workplaces reopen.

Dozens of family and friends of Jezniah Smith came to honor the fallen cyclists with the installation of a white-painted "ghost bike" at the crash site in Humboldt Park.

The Chicago Department of Transportation's Walk To Transit project will bring "quick fixes" to ten Chicago Transit Authority rail stations next year, including several long-needed improvements to the sidewalks and crosswalks around the Division Blue Line station. Currently, people walking to and from the transit line, or to the numerous shops and residences around the Polish Triangle, face some dismal walking conditions. CDOT will make these improvements as part of Walk To Transit's first phase:

A new study has found that buffered bike lanes are better than conventional bike lanes when it comes to encouraging bicyclists to ride outside the door zone. The study draws its conclusion, in part, based on a test done with bike lanes in Chicago.

The Chicago Department of Transportation presented a proposal last night to build curb-separated bike lanes on each side of Clybourn, from Halsted to Division Streets, and to reconfigure the oversized intersection where Clybourn meets Division, Sedgwick, and Orleans in front of Seward Park.

The crash site. Image: Google Street View

The Chicago Department of Transportation is currently hustling to construct 35 miles of buffered and protected bike lanes this year, which would bring us to a total of 65 miles of lanes installed under Mayor Rahm Emanuel. The department hopes to reach 100 miles by May 2015. However, in the rush to build a large quantity of lanes, it’s important to keep an eye on quality as well.

Pavement markings installed in 2012 in the Humboldt Park neighborhood to designate bike lanes and "Children’s Safety Zones" are quickly disappearing, less than six months after installation.