Daily Road Conditions for Biking in Winter

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Permalink Reply by Anne Alt on February 19, 2009 at 6:30am

I'm just overjoyed to see that ice - NOT. Breaking out the Yaktrax again so I can walk to the train without falling on my ass. *sigh* I have NO desire to visit an ER today.

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Permalink Reply by E A on February 19, 2009 at 7:52am

How are the roads today -- Lincoln/Wells???? Travel ready for bikes? The roads were horrific by 9pm last night!!!

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Permalink Reply by BalloonBiker on February 19, 2009 at 9:20am

E A said:

How are the roads today -- Lincoln/Wells???? Travel ready for bikes? The roads were horrific by 9pm last night!!!

I chickened out today. However, I did almost slip and fall about 5-6 times on my way to the train. At least thats better than having a car plow into me on my bike.

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Permalink Reply by terryg on February 19, 2009 at 9:59am

My side street was solid ... as in solid ice. Finally getting to Lincoln southbound was a relative relief. All told the parts where you'd want to point a bike on the road were rather good. Cold & kind of windy, but I think we've encountered worse this winter.

Crossing the river on the Wells bridge induced some pucker, and I ended up going left on Wacker to take LaSalle into the loop. Being in the relative dark under the Wells tracks didn't seem like a good idea at the time.

I was definitely slower overall.

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Permalink Reply by Kevin on February 19, 2009 at 11:31am

Lincoln/Wells was in decent shape, although much of the bike lane was pretty icy, moreso than what I've noticed after a snow this winter. I rode as close to the car lane as I could without the wind knocking me into cars or potholes with relative success. I stayed on Wells across the bridge which was a bit scary.

Also slower here, my overall commute was a good 8-10 minutes more than normal. Seemed to be more cars on the road than usual which added time.

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Permalink Reply by Natalie on February 19, 2009 at 11:42am

I rode home around 8:30 last night from Streeterville, and the roads were terrible. I think the city wasn't paying any attention, and all of a sudden the rain had frozen and then was coated with a layer of snow. My entire commute I was convinced I was either going to get hit by an out-of-control car or be the victim of a single-bike accident when I wiped out on a slick patch. It was a slow ride but I kept the rubber side down. I crossed the Chicago Avenue bridge on foot--no point in taking any chances.

In contrast, this morning was no big deal. I live on Sacramento, so instead of taking a side street to Milwaukee, I headed up to Fullerton and rode one block east to Milwaukee. I had no problems whatsoever. I had to ride out in the lane a bit, but it wasn't so much icy as slushy. I couldn't resist riding my new bike today, so my main concern was staying slush-free. (And it's not merely vanity--I don't get my coating of Frame Saver till next Monday.)

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Permalink Reply by Andrea K on February 19, 2009 at 11:38pm

Lakefront trail icy stretches. Riding downtown on the lakefront trail late this afternoon, I made the mistake of trying to just walk my bike around the S-curve stretch of the trail south of Chicago Avenue. It was hard enough just trying to keep the bike upright and continue sliding down the icy incline toward the lake. Needless to say, I took the streets home from downtown later at night to avoid the hassle again of trying to cross this stretch on foot.

The previous night when I rode the trail, it was manageable to get off the bike and walk it through the S-curve, though on my return ride, I again avoided it because snow had built up on the trail, so I took a street route home. I wonder what would be the most cost-effective manner of reducing the water flow on this stretch of the trail during winter. But the likelihood of anything ever being done to fix up this often treacherous stretch of trail during the winter seems remote.

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Permalink Reply by E A on February 20, 2009 at 8:54am

I avoid the Lake Front Path in winter - too icy and windy. At least on the roads the buildings help buffer against some of that harsh (sometimes vicious) wind. Not sure if a temporary break wall would help??? Couldn't be any harder to install such a path-saving measure than it is to set up the bar & grill each summer.

"I wonder what would be the most cost-effective manner of reducing the water flow on this stretch of the trail during winter. But the likelihood of anything ever being done to fix up this often treacherous stretch of trail during the winter seems remote."

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