Active Transportation Alliance

"As NITA begins its work, the region should remain focused on more time-efficient, frequent, and reliable bus and train service; accessible paratransit; and safer walking and biking connections. Considering new technology should not eclipse those priorities."

It's #BuildTheTunnel. No, seriously. 🎁🔗: www.chicagobusiness.com/opinion/comm...

Come on Chicago. Start taking the bus/train and get your life back. Nothing better than jumping on public trans with a coffee in one hand and a book in the other.

looks like it will be a nice day for this occasion, come on by if you like. Lily will be remembered

There's clearly a coordinated effort to wrap up the service boards' pre-NITA service planning efforts, so go provide feedback on the plans: 🚍 CTA Bus Vision Project: www.surveymonkey.com/r/busvisions... 🚍 Pace ReVision: www.surveymonkey.com/r/revisiondr... 🚆 Metra SNP: www.surveymonkey.com/r/RZBQHFP

Let's make buses faster! Survey link: ctabusvisionproject.com

After school drop-off this morning, I found myself in a small fleet of electric cargo bikes. There were five of us together at one point. Every year, more and more parents are ditching the car for the school run. State e-bike rebate programs are such a no-brainer. Wish we had one in Illinois.

The North Park community celebrates the new Bryn Mawr protected bike lanes with a group ride Sun. 9/18, 11 AM, starting at farmers market at Bryn Mawr/Kimball. 🥳 www.facebook.com/groups/12682...

"The Smart Streets program can help buses move faster in designated lanes and protect people biking from [having to make] potentially deadly maneuvers around vehicles parked in bike lanes.” Our streets just got smarter 🤓

“The Menu system underfunds infrastructure citywide and leads to significant disparities between wards. It also eschews infrastructure management best practices, leading to a highly inefficient system that creates higher costs and worse results for all.” citythatworks.substack.com/p/the-city-d...

“Chicago is primed and ready to benefit from bus rapid transit on Western Avenue,” says Amy Rynell, executive president of the Active Transportation Alliance. “BRT creates a train-like transit experience for a fraction of the cost of heavy rail."

Chicago should embrace its 'second city' moniker and follow New York's lead on daylighting intersections with nature's oldest traffic-calming technology: boulders. This can be deployed in hours for drastically less money than our concrete bump outs that require a team of 4, and months of planning

"Perhaps most importantly, Divvy eases Chicago’s dependence on cars for everyday trips. That means fewer clogged roadways and less climate pollution. Even if you don’t use Divvy, you benefit from it." Read the full letter to the editor from our very own Jim Merrell below. 🎁🔗

"Drivers feel trapped: 73 percent of drivers say they have no choice but to drive as much as they do, and 53 percent want more transportation options." Cheated by Car Dependence: Drivers and Nondrivers in the United States climateandcommunity.org/research/dri...

The proposed Weber Spur trail would convert ~ 2 mi of abandoned UP rail line into multi-use trail, from Elston & Kimberly to Devon & Springfield. Connect to existing bicycle routes: Elston bike lane, Bryn Mawr bike lanes, Labagh Woods, North Branch Trail, Sauganash Trail, and UP Recreation Path.

📢 Public Hearing: Proposed Weber Spur Trail 🚲🚶 The Chicago Department of Transportation (CDOT) and Alderman Nugent invite residents to a Public Hearing about the proposed Weber Spur Trail. 📅 Wednesday, October 14, 2026 🕕 6:00–8:00 PM 📍 NEIU Student Union Building www.chicago.gov/weber-spur-t...

We love seeing new protected bike lanes! Go bike to all the great restaurants on Bryn Mawr and tell them you appreciate the new infrastructure!

See ya there!

The @nitachicago.bsky.social expands the Access Pilot Program across its transit network to include CTA and Pace, creating a regionwide reduced fare program for households receiving SNAP or Illinois Department of Human Services (IDHS) FRESH Program benefits. nita.illinois.gov/about-rta/pr...

Winter will be here before you want it. Get you and your bike ready for cold weather season before it hits. BGN will teach you about layering, winter maintenance, assessing road conditions, making bail-out plans, and when it's unsafe. 📍 Beermiscuous, 2812 N Lincoln ⏰ Wed 10/21 6pm

Working Bikes is turning 27 and having an anniversary party on October 3rd! 4 to 8pm. Tickets available here: workingbikes.org/working-bike...

"The Northern Illinois Transit Authority (NITA) wants to hear from you! Your input will help shape how we invest in our transit system. Please take a few minutes to tell us what matters most to you for the 2027 Regional Transit Operating Budget" @nitachicago.bsky.social

An opportunity to walk your transit talk. @nitachicago.bsky.social is accepting applications through October 31 for the Riders Advisory Council and the ADA Advisory Council to advise the NITA Board and provide recommendations on improving policies, programs, and transit service. nita.illinois.gov

NITA Interactive Open House 10/14 from 3pm to 6pm. 225 S. Canal St Attendees are encouraged to "discuss pain points and future improvements, and learn more about what the Northern Illinois Transit Authority, CTA, Metra, and Pace have planned for regional transit in 2027 and beyond." Register below👇

Please fill out this @illinoisdot.bsky.social survey about what you need from an IL intercity bus program www.surveymonkey.com/r/2B25XBD

And for the second time this week, I get to notice a digital signage update at my home station: this time, a new real time display showing all 3 service boards 😍

"It would not only directly benefit express bus riders through reduced travel times, but enhance reliability and drastically reduce the costs of providing service across the entire CTA network."

Bike buses are straight joy. If you've ever seen these groups commuting, there's just delight. It's the exact opposite of what I've heard parents say about school drop-off lines with cars.

Director Alvarez asks what you'd do if you could do something bold to improve transit? CTA answers dedicated bus lanes, we're way behind our peer municipalities. A bold goal of 100-150 miles of dedicated lanes would be transformative. Ridership #s showing people want to ride the bus! 🚌👏

Today is World Car-Free Day, an annual celebration to inspire you to ditch your cars and get around using more sustainable methods of travel. 🚙🚫 No matter where you're going, CTA, Metra, and Pace can help you get around Chicagoland easily — not just today but every day!

So far over 150 people have contacted their alders demanding no cuts to safe streets this upcoming budget season. Great start but we need to keep the momentum going! Tell your friends and family, no cuts, we need to invest in saving lives. Contact your alder: activetrans.quorum.us/campaign/168...

We are going to be cleaning up The People's Bridge™ (Cortland) in advance of the event we are hosting the following week (details on that soon). We need some help on 10/10: 10-1: General tidy/carpentry 1-4: Painting/general maintenance Can you help? DM or email us at grassroots@bikegridnow.org

The alders' letter references a 2025 report produced by the Equity in Enforcement working group. There's one particular table from the report worth revisiting, reproduced here. The chart is my own approximation, but it shows that a small # of drivers are responsible for a large % of the violations.

Dawg what's so hard about imagining that if you give people other ways to get places your traffic will be lower? Drivers should be for literally every means of alternate transit available.

"While most of the drivers who got a ticket in the mail did not commit another infraction, commercial vehicles were among the most consistent scofflaws" Great to see that these tickets are leading to behavioral changes for individuals but we must find a way to rein in the delivery companies.

Need to expand to crosswalks too. Pushing a stroller has radicalized me even more. After a certain number of violations we should be confiscating vehicles and licenses.

Tell City Council and Mayor Johnson: No Cuts to Safer Streets. Invest in Saving Lives. Send your alder a letter telling them you support more investment in safer streets, better education for drivers, and equitable enforcement of traffic laws. Tap below 👇🔗

Very excited folks receiving SNAP benefits will be eligible for reduced fares on @chicagocta.bsky.social & Pace!

"Cars are associated with roughly 40,000 deaths and 2.4 to 2.8 million injured or ER-treated people every year. E-bike deaths were 91 in 2023 and 97 in 2024, with a total of 310 from 2017 through 2024."

Rep. Buckner at first NITA board meeting: "This is not a new acronym on top of the same old problems. This has to be a reset. People will support public transportation when they believe public transportation supports them." activetransportation.org/blog/transit...

Last night, we gathered with our 2026 Bike the Drive volunteers to say "thanks" for a job well done. These volunteers are the lifeblood of our organization, and Bike the Drive wouldn't happen without their dedication. Our immense gratitude goes out to you! Thanks to SRAM for hosting us.

When they tell you that walkability and public transit can't work here, just remind them that it once did until we let a single industry dismantle it.