Evanston

News at a recent meeting on the Evanston Bike Plan included a current completion target of mid-to-late 2029 for the long-awaited Chicago Avenue protected lane extension.

See the City of Evanston's webpage for this project, including Tuesday's meeting presentation and display boards, here.

Yesterday I discussed the brouhaha over a proposal to extend the two-way protected bike lane on Evanston's Chicago Avenue south about two miles to the city of Chicago border. A total of 62 merchants and "avid cyclists" signed two different letters opposing the new bikeway because it would involve converting 66 of the corridor's 250 car parking spaces – only about a quarter of them. However, more than 250 business people and residents have signed another letter from the Evanston Transit Alliance in favor of the initiative.

While an article in the Evanston RoundTable suggests that most residents are opposed to the project, hundreds of people signed a letter to support it.

Update 12/2/24, 1:15 PM: Evanston's Chicago Avenue Corridor Project, including the protected bike lane extension proposal, will be discussed at a community meeting on Tuesday 12/10, 7-9 p.m. at Robert Crown Community Center, 1801 Main St. in Evanston.

Pace riders may get more evening and weekend service in 2025 – but it will be another month before they’ll see any details on what that might look like.

On October 29, Pace suburban bus transit agency launched the Pulse Dempster Arterial Rapid Transit bus service – for real this time. 

Filling in a 1.5-mile gap in the North Shore Channel Trail would connect it with the lakefront and other North Shore bikeways.

The goals of the project are somewhat undefined, but that's not necessarily a bad thing this early in the process.