- As of right now, Chicago certainly isn't one of the most bicycle-friendly cities, every year numerous cyclists are hit by cars while traveling to and from work and other locations. But city officials are hoping to change that by creating a new type of bicycle lane that will make traveling on Chicago's streets safer and prevent cyclists from getting hit by cars.
But wait! There's more!
Unlike the bike lanes in many other cities where the designated lane is just a 5-foot wide strip of the street next to traveling vehicles, the city is adopting a "cycle track." This special type of bike lane will create a physical barrier between vehicle lanes and the lane designated for cyclists. Cycle tracks most commonly use concrete "Jersey walls," typically seen in construction sites, or raised concrete barriers that don't let bicycles pass into the vehicle lanes or vice versa.
The news came after the Chicago Department of Transportation was given a $3.2 million grant from the federal government to improve their bicycle lanes by testing and building cycle tracks in the city. As of right now, CDOT is trying it out on Stony Island Avenue, between 77th and 69th streets.
First of all, creating a "wall" or Jersey barriers - wouldn't that pretty much remove a few miles of curb parking on the streets affected?
Second, the bikers are going to just love being penned in by a curb and a Jersey wall when someone pops out to hit them with a two-by-four to steal their bikes, phones and i-Pods. Every copper in the city can name a viaduct or stretch of bike lane notorious for muggings, robberies and random beatings of bikers. Many times, the cyclists can utilize their mobility avoid or escape the worst of an attack. But this sounds exactly like the chute to a slaughterhouse.