Promoted

It's time for the fifth installment of our series "Streetsblog Chicago versus smoking on the CTA." This is an effort to find holistic solutions (not simply more policing) to the aggravating problem of smoking and vaping inside railcars. Take a look at part one for an intro to my perspective on the issue. It's common knowledge that smoking on the 'L' is a major hazard for people with disabilities, seniors, and young kids. It's also unhealthy and annoying for the rest of us, and it causes people to instead choose modes like driving and ride-hail, contributing to crashes, pollution, and congestion.

Recently, Josh Mark stepped down as chief of staff for the 47th Ward, represented by Ald. Matt Martin. The North Side district contains parts of North Center, Lincoln Square, Uptown, and Lakeview, and Martin is one of Chicago's most sustainable transportation-friendly City Council members. Many walking, biking, transit, and equitable TOD projects have happened in the ward since he took office in May 2019. Especially in recent years when Mark served as COS, he's been a key lieutenant to the alder who helped get those things done.

Last Sunday was the second-to-last epidose of "Safe Streets: The Comedy Show. Why It Sucks to Walk or Drive in Chicago, and How We Can Fix It." It's an "edu-comedy revue" created by Streetsblog contributor Ellen Steinke that combines sketch comedy, improv, and satire that "takes on the systems behind our streets, not just the people stuck using them."

It seems like the average SBC reader was amused by my nickname for "the mostly right-leaning folks using weekly anti-Archer [Avenue traffic safety] project protests as a political hook": "The Make Archer Great Again" (MAGA) posse.

This piece also runs on the website A City That Works, a newsletter about public policy in the Chicago region. Richard Day co-edits that publication, focusing on transportation issues. As a guest op-ed, this article does not necessarily reflect Streetsblog Chicago staffers' perspectives on this issue.

With apologies to The B-52s, turn your watch back about 34 years. That's when triathlon racer Jon Boub was badly injured on a training ride when his front wheel got stuck in a bridge gap on Saint Charles Road in west-suburban DuPage County. That was because a Wayne Township road crew had removed the asphalt filler from between the wooden planks, making it unsafe for cycling.

There was backlash when CDOT proposed parking conversions for protected lanes on Clark in Uptown. But the end product offers reason for optimism in Brighton Park.

It was perhaps fitting that much of the March 11 meeting of the CTA's board was held to the chanting  and shouts from a rally taking place right outside.