Winter Biking Will Suck A Little Less This Year

jknecht

We already know our winter will be cold and snowy, but if you're one of the many downtown-bound bike commuters, this year might be the most bearable yet for winter biking.

Just last week, the city received special snow removal and salt truck specially fitted for the protected bike lanes as part of Advil's "Congestion Relief Project" (Check out our friends at GRID Chicago for photos of the truck and last week's event).

How protected bike lanes would be maintained in winter was a question on many commuters' minds when the first protected lane was installed along Kinzie this spring (there are more lanes on the way along Jackson Blvd, 18th St and Elston Avenue); come snow plow season, designated bike lanes and shared lanes are typically lost to the mountains of plowed snow.

The special truck and plow should make a difference to the cars and bikers who take the highly trafficked Milwaukee to Kinzie route each day. Though it's just one truck for now, commuters will be especially grateful if the city stays on track with Mayor Emanuel's plan to add at least 25 miles of protected bike lane a year.

Though no special plows or plans have been announced for the regular ol' bike lanes this year, check back next week for our two-part guide on winter biking in Chicago.

In the meantime, the Huffington Post has a nice infographic on why biking is so damn great-no matter what the weather's like outside.

Lookout for parts I and II of our Winter Biking in Chicago special next Monday and Wednesday.

Contact the author of this article or email tips@chicagoist.com with further questions, comments or tips.

By Kim Bellware in News on December 14, 2011 4:00 PM 0 Comments

Comments [rss]

Matt Johnson

I am a cyclist and don't like the protected bike lanes with the physical barriers. They are an eyesore, will get broken off and cause unneeded traffic backups. Cars and bikes can peacefully co-exist on the wide diagonal roads. Proper striping is sufficient. Car vs bike incidents and rude cyclists or drivers are the exception, not the rule. You only hear about the incidents, not the millions of incident free journeys by both.

Depending on the trip and what you need to carry with you walking, bike, car or CTA might be the best choice. There is no one size fits all.

Ian Brett Cooper

The special snow removal and salt truck specially fitted for the protected bike lanes would have come in useful a few days ago when it snowed. Maybe the city budget didn't have funds to pay anyone to drive it, or maybe city officials needed it to protect the truck's parking space from snow accumulation (a job it does admirably). Hopefully the problem will be solved before winter really hits.

Hopefully, the special snow removal and salt truck specially fitted for the protected bike lanes is not just for show. I suspect it is.

magooisim

that wasn't snow a few days ago. Apparently you're new to chicago. You'll know when it snows.

Ian Brett Cooper

There was some snow. There has been much more snow recently. How are the plows doing? Not too well, I hear. I guess they finally dusted the plow off and got it going, well after the other traffic lanes were cleared. Yeah, cycling is a priority for the city of Chicago - it's just that cars come first.

The plow was a great PR factor when there was no snow. Now the reality is beginning to overcome the hype.

BlueFairlane

Any idea when the lane on Elston will be finished? Or at least re-stripped? Since they repaved it and removed the bike lanes, cars have decided it's a freeway, I've been afraid to go that way.

Steven Vance

Spring 2012 is correct. The design was not finished until recently because of "concerns of business owners, residents, and dealing with loading zones" according to CDOT from today's MBAC meeting. Subscribe to Grid Chicago for more on this subject.

Kim

According to these folks (http://www.chicagobikes.org/pu..., Elston will be done in the spring of 2012. Fingers crossed, right?

BlueFairlane

Spring, 2012. Even I was not expecting that.

Meanwhile, a perfectly safe and uncongested route is turned into a death trap for much of its route for what will turn out to be 8 or 9 months, forcing me onto the much more congested Milwaukee. The conspiracy theorist in me wonders if people will be doing bike traffic counts during the death trap phase in order to boost the post-fancy-lane jump.

And folks wonder why I'm skeptical of the city's bike improvement initiatives.

Steven Vance

Apparently it's now too cold to apply thermoplastic to roads so Elston Avenue will not have any kind of lane striping until Spring 2012. I'm in the same boat as you - I take Elston sometimes because it has fewer door zones, and stops and starts, not to mention less congestion.

I'm disappointed - the road looks like a "free for all zone", where people can drive when and how they please.