The Chainlink

I wasn't able to make the open house Saturday.

 

An article in The Trib sounded like there was a good turnout.  

 

How was it?   Did you feel the city was listening to you?

 

 

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Thanks, that helps.

So Raul is Allen Wrench?

Feel free to use the Pilsen/Little Village Bicycle Alliance e-mail list, or the chainlink Pilsen/Little Village or South Side groups to get the word out. Kind of feeling like if the outreach about these particular local meetings didn't reach me, they didn't reach a lot of people.

Here is a link to the master map of all the regions and the each of the nine regions.

http://www.chicagobikes.org/public/SFC.php

I'm glad that CDOT is going to all the trouble to get public input via the meetings and stuff, but  participating and getting information seems like a big confusing mess. The West region is using a google doc to get input, which is great, but what about the rest of us? There is a meeting in my neighborhood in a week and this is the first I've heard about it? Was the task of spreading information and gathering input just sprinkled on a group of volunteers without giving them any tools or direction?


jennifer james said:

Hi Howard- Raul and I are the CAG folks for your area-- Mid southwest side- residentially but you should feel welcome at any of the meetings held to map in any area. As mentioned on another thread we are meeting at Rapid Trans on Thursday and then again at Working Bikes on the 19th both at 6.30p.m. We will also meet in Pilsen, Bridgeport, near Midway and again west of the hospital area north west on our region.

I love the idea of taking data on-line too. there are lots of opportunities to share input on this. We posted on Chicargobike as well. 

Each CAG is holding a meeting or meetings depending on the group to collect as much information as possible on current conditions, gaps, barriers and destinations.  Each meeting will include maps to be marked accordingly. There will also be larger public meetings held later in the winter. All the CAG are asking community members to be a part of each group to help collect data and share information.

Here is a list of all 9 regions and the volunteer coordinators for each region.

http://www.activetrans.org/blog/johnlankford/community-advisory-gro...

This particular plan is focusing on developing a more complete bike route network.

Kevin C said:

I got there a little after 2:00 pm. There were a dozen or so maps of regions of the city (Central, Near West, SouthEast, etc.) up on the walls and attendees were invited to make written comments and suggestions on the maps regarding routes; i.e. conditions, needs, and proposed improvements. By the time I arrived, most of the maps were filled with comments. It was just the first open house, so the other aspects of the update to the 2015 plan may be reserved for a future date, but there was no mention of, or forum for, bike parking, transit, education, law enforcement and crash analysis, etc.  

Ouch!  That stinks.

Lizzy M. said:

...about the lights at Belmont and Broadway, which is more an out-of-control-auto-traffic issue and less a biking issue. Several months ago, they added a leading pedestrian interval (a moment when all lights are red and the walk signal is Go) to the intersection. After less than a month of the leading pedestrian interval being live, drivers had already adapted to running the red light because they knew there would be no cross traffic. The leading pedestrian interval is now useless and that intersection needs a serious campaign of traffic enforcement. She seemed very surprised to learn that the intersection was so unruly.

The process is just getting started.  It's been less than 2 weeks since we had our initial group leaders meeting and started getting smaller local meetings lined up.

For those who are NOT in Jennifer's near west area, her team is ahead of the game in scheduling additional meetings to supplement the big west side meeting happening in January.  Kudos to Jennifer and Raul!  I hope that those of us in other areas of the city can catch up.

h' said:

...get the word out. Kind of feeling like if the outreach about these particular local meetings didn't reach me, they didn't reach a lot of people.

This is really excited.   

To us, since we ride these streets everyday it makes sense that we have very useful input, but I'm not sure if every city administration thinks that.

Who thought a year ago the city would ACTUALLY be asking the public's advice on cycling infrastructure! 

I wasn't able to make the meeting and I'm really excited to see an online survey to be able to contribute to documenting biking conditions on the west side.  Thanks!



Steven Lane said:

I was really impressed with the turnout, more so by how much input was collected, looked like each region's map was thoroughly annotated (Image of West Region below).

I suspect a great deal of Chainlink members live and bike in the West Region. We are collecting input online, please take a few minutes to add your comments. Map of region and Online Survey

How did that process work? It seemed pretty non-transparent and non-open. But I may just missed something?


Michelle Stenzel said:

H, the CDOT team recruited volunteer community leaders from each of 9 city areas to help host smaller meetings within the neighborhoods. 

From what I have seen of the department, I would tend to suspect the same Tony.

Tony Adams said:

How did that process work? It seemed pretty non-transparent and non-open. But I may just missed something?


Michelle Stenzel said:

H, the CDOT team recruited volunteer community leaders from each of 9 city areas to help host smaller meetings within the neighborhoods. 

I’m not sure exactly how other people were recruited. I responded to Active Trans’ call for people to volunteer for their brand new Neighborhood Bikeways Campaign in June, and have been working with them since then, forming a neighborhood bike/peds advocacy group in Lincoln Park/43rd ward, so that may be how my name came up.

 

The good news is there’s lots of work to do for ANYONE who wants to step up their involvement and participation over the next few months, so it’s good to hear of more people eager to contribute.

In addition to supporting and attending the larger citywide meetings that are being put on by the CDOT team, the volunteers are working hard at the following and would love your help, so anyone reading this, please contact your CAG leaders to pitch in however you can: Setting up additional meetings in the local community area; coordinating dates, meeting spaces, supplies, e-mail lists, RSVPs; publicizing the meetings and executing them; compiling information received during the meeting into useable form to submit to the CDOT team.

You can use the links above to figure out which community group you live in, and to find the e-mail addresses of the volunteer leaders in your area. Looking forward to hearing from you!



Tony Adams said:

How did that process work? It seemed pretty non-transparent and non-open. But I may just missed something?


Michelle Stenzel said:

H, the CDOT team recruited volunteer community leaders from each of 9 city areas to help host smaller meetings within the neighborhoods. 

It'll have to be a mystery, h'.

or was that h3n3, perhaps!?

h' said:

Thanks, that helps.

So Raul is Allen Wrench?

Feel free to use the Pilsen/Little Village Bicycle Alliance e-mail list, or the chainlink Pilsen/Little Village or South Side groups to get the word out. Kind of feeling like if the outreach about these particular local meetings didn't reach me, they didn't reach a lot of people.

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