Construction projects along busy routes make for dangerous cycling season – Chicago Tribune
The “Hipster Highway,” the nickname for a stretch of Milwaukee Avenue heavily used by bicyclists, is caught in a paradox.
The popularity of biking along the Northwest Side arterial, with its stretches of marked or protected bike lanes and its connections to downtown and The 606 trail, has contributed to the appeal of surrounding neighborhoods.
But the trendiness of Goose Island and Logan Square and the improved economy have prompted construction along Milwaukee, which in turn has led to some unnerving months for cyclists, who have had to dodge trucks and construction fencing while rattling their bones over broken pavement. Art student Lisa Kuivinen, 20, was killed on Aug.16 by a truck that went into the bike lane during morning rush hour.
“I don’t think it’s ever been this bad,” said attorney Jeffrey Kroll, who represents victims of bike crashes, including the family of Virginia Murray, 25, killed by a flatbed truck in July. “The city of Chicago wants people on bikes, but there’s not a safe route for these bikes when you’re blocking a lane due to construction.”
Obstructions and uneven pavement from water main and street repairs also have created issues along popular biking routes like Kinzie and Dearborn streets and Elston Avenue.
Bicyclists and advocates want the city, which has encouraged biking with bike lanes and the expansion of the Divvy shared bike program, to increase enforcement against parking and driving in bike lanes and to make sure construction companies have proper permits for what they’re doing.
“Just as we need more enforcement for traffic rules that are commonly ignored, the same is true for contractors who break the city’s rules for construction zones,” said Active Transportation Alliance Executive Director Ron Burke. He noted that a contractor on Dearborn was recently fined.
Four bicyclists have been killed so far this year — double what it was in 2015 for the same period but matching the average for 2010-2014, according to the Chicago Department of Transportation.
CDOT did not have nonfatal crash numbers for this year, though personal injury attorney Jim Freeman said it has been a “horrific summer” for bike wrecks.
Recent deaths have caused particular alarm in the cycling community, in part because all the victims were hit by large, commercial vehicles. Francisco Cruz, 58, died Aug. 17 after a hit-and-run by a cargo van in the West Garfield Park neighborhood. Blaine Klingenberg, 29, was hit by a tour bus on Michigan Avenue in June.
City concedes problem
The CDOT officials say they know there are conflicts and encourage cyclists and pedestrians to contact 3-1-1 if they see obstructions or improper behavior by drivers or builders. If construction is blocking a bike lane, CDOT will send inspectors to make sure contractors have permits and are following them, spokesman Mike Claffey said.
The Active Transportation Alliance also is urging pedestrians and cyclists to send photos of obstructions to cleartheway@activetrans.org, which will be passed on to city officials.
Mike Amsden, assistant director of transportation planning for CDOT, said the city recently told contractors at a Kenect development at Milwaukee and Grand avenues in West Town to move out of the bike lane. Construction had pushed cyclists into a frighteningly narrow passage between a fence and motor vehicles. The bike lane is now clear.
“It’s an important issue for us, especially with the increase in bike lanes we have, the increase in ridership and the increase in development happening on some of our high ridership bike lanes,” Amsden told a packed meeting of the mayor’s Bicycle Advisory Council last week. “We get it.”
Another trouble spot for cyclists has been the 830 N. Milwaukee Ave. construction site, near where Kuivinen was killed. The site is where motor vehicles and bicyclists merge from Elston Avenue onto Milwaukee, and bicycles passing through the area are forced into heavy traffic, creating stress for motorists and cyclists alike.
Summit Design and Build has a barricade permit that runs until Friday. But the permit said that the bike lane must stay open during the morning rush hour, and as of last week the stretch at Elston was not open. A sign north of the site said the bike lane is closed.
Representatives for Summit and Kenect did not return calls for comment.
Dan McLaughlin, executive director of the Builders Association, a trade group that represents contractors and suppliers, said that the city is “pretty strict” about construction sites. “If there’s an issue, they’re quick to tell a contractor they need to make a change,” McLaughlin said.
Jett Robinson, 28, of Little Italy, said he has sent pictures to CDOT and flagged down the police about bike lane blockages, and it does not help.
“What are we supposed to do as citizens to actually get you to do something about enforcement?” Robinson asked at the advisory council meeting.
CDOT Commissioner Rebekah Scheinfeld compared the problem to the “whack-a-mole” arcade game — every time a problem is addressed in one place, it pops up somewhere else. She said citizens can also point out to lawbreakers what they are doing wrong, if they felt safe doing it.
Even city officials can have trouble getting enforcement. Last Wednesday morning, two CDOT “bicycling ambassadors” say they and others tried for an hour to get Chicago police to get a truck out of a busy Kinzie bike lane.
Ambassadors Tyler Rose and Soledad Maristany yelled warnings to bicyclists, who could not see around the truck to stop for pedestrians in the crosswalk.
“Make the road safe for everybody!” Rose called cheerfully. “Have a great day!” The police never came, and the trucker finally moved on his own. Chicago Police Department spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said the incident was being investigated.
“CPD takes bicycle and pedestrian safety very seriously,” Guglielmi said.
Rose, 29, of Logan Square, who moved to Chicago in part because of better cycling, thinks the city is going through a culture change to allow cyclists and other vehicles to peacefully co-exist.
“It’s not going to change overnight,” Rose said.
Fatal bike crashes have increased nationwide. Deaths went up by 12.2 percent in 2015 compared with 2014, and are at their highest level since 1995, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
All fatalities on the roads were up 7.2 percent. The National Safety Council has blamed the increased fatalities on more cars due to cheaper gas and distracted drivers.
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