Loop

The Loop Link bus rapid transit corridor on Washington Street includes a concrete-protected bike lane between the island bus stations and the curb. But the construction of the raised, curbside bus platforms and dedicated bus lanes on Madison Street involved the removal an existing bike lane.

The City of Chicago has made notable progress on expanding its network of protected bike lanes into more community areas and communities of color than it had before Rahm Emanuel became mayor, but it seems nothing is better about the way bicyclists and pedestrians are accommodated around construction projects. The city has even beefed up detour rules contractors must follow multiple times to benefit human-powered transportation.

Like kids unwrapping presents, travelers in downtown Chicago had some shiny new infrastructure to try out Sunday morning. The Loop Link bus rapid transit system debuted on a day when weekday traffic wasn't an issue, although the central business district was packed with holiday shoppers. Monday will be the first big test of the system.

As part of the Loop Link bus rapid transit project, which includes the construction of protected bike lanes on Washington, Randolph, and Clinton downtown, the Chicago Department of Transportation is trying a kind of intersection treatment that’s new to our city. Inspired by Dutch-style “protected intersections,” they’re installing special concrete curbs and islands in an effort to shield cyclists from turning vehicles.

Hiromi Hosono, 42, an agriculture professor from Japan, was killed earlier this month by the driver of a trolley-themed tour bus who failed to yield while making a right turn.

[This article also runs in Checkerboard City, John's transportation column in Newcity magazine, which hits the streets on Wednesday evenings.]

There are several pros and cons of the city's controversial plan to sell the Pritzker Park site for development. One important and urgent aspect is that it would be an unparalleled – and potentially free – opportunity to create the first enclosed, wheelchair-accessible transfer between the CTA's Loop elevated lines and the Red and Blue Line subways.

Once again, the Chicago Loop Alliance is rolling out a full slate of placemaking initiatives in an effort to boost downtown retail and promote the arts. The centerpiece of the campaign is Activate, a series of pop-up art parties held in alleys, which the downtown chamber of commerce says led to hundreds of thousands of dollars in additional sales at local businesses. This year’s happenings will take place on May 15, June 12, July 30, August 27, September 18, and October 16 from 5-10 p.m., with specific locations announced the month before on the Activate website.

When you build a fabulous new attraction in the center of a bustling metropolis, you obviously want to maximize pedestrian access to make it easy for large numbers of people to walk there, right? That’s not what happened with Millennium Park.