The Chainlink

Was Open Streets on State Street a success?

Today on Grid Chicago, Steven Vance talks to staff from the Active Transportation Alliance and the Chicago Loop Alliance about Open Streets on State Street, Chicago's first downtown ciclovia, about how they're gauging whether the event succeeded:

http://gridchicago.com/2011/how-to-call-open-streets-on-state-stree...

 

The post also features our impressions and several of our photos of this very cool event, which featured a temporary skateboard park, Capoeira, aerobics, hoola hooping, breakdancing, roller derby and much, much more on a fabulously (almost) car-free State Street. Be sure to check out Steven's awesome video taken while he toured the whole event from the front of a cargo bike.

 

What do you think - was Open Streets successful? Why or why not?

 

Keep moving forward,

 

John Greenfield

 

 

 

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Permalink Reply by Ace Mann on October 4, 2011 at 11:19am
I thought it was great.Good to see a few Chainlinkers volunteering for it.I also put up a quick video on YouTube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bESaJ_kzNwk not nearly as cool as Steve's.
Permalink Reply by Tiberculosis on October 4, 2011 at 11:34am

Are they planning on arranging the "entertainment" everytime or hoping for folks to  naturally schedule their workout class, their chamber jazz, Windy city roller's to jam out downtown? Seems like it's trying to be too many things but probably with the intent on what's possible. Haven't experienced the Cyclovia's in other city's but the closing of the main road through Golden Gate Park in SF on Sunday's was always great. There would be performers, roller disco groups and cyclist all over. I could see them maybe adding a farmers market to one of the ends, throwing in vendors could complicate things though. I was down there when they were setting things up, looked pretty cool and I wish it luck. Be nice out on one of the boulevards in the neighborhoods (yeah, I know people live downtown) so more residents than tourists benifit. Maybe a rotation?

Permalink Reply by John Greenfield on October 4, 2011 at 11:38am

I believe they would regularly schedule activities and entertainment - that seems to be how it works in other U.S. cities.

 

The long-term goal is to connect State Street to the neighborhoods, including low-income communities, perhaps using streets like Milwaukee, Madison and Ogden that radiate out from downtown.

Permalink Reply by Steven Vance on October 4, 2011 at 12:51pm
It was on the boulevard system in 2008 and 2009, which travels through many low-density neighborhoods and required many crossings for car drivers. I think both of those factors led us to calling it a "bumpy ride" on the blog. 

Tiberculosis said:

 I was down there when they were setting things up, looked pretty cool and I wish it luck. Be nice out on one of the boulevards in the neighborhoods (yeah, I know people live downtown) so more residents than tourists benifit. Maybe a rotation?

Permalink Reply by Jared on October 4, 2011 at 1:45pm
Wasn't this more of a street festival than anything else?  I didn't go but it seems much different than the Open Parkways or whatever they were called they had a few years ago where they closed off several miles of streets to cars and the primary activity it seemed as cycling.
Permalink Reply by Michelle S on October 4, 2011 at 1:54pm

I thought it was fun and would call it a success as well.

 

However, it occurred to me that it will always be hard for any open streets event to be both friendly for pedestrians and bikes. For it to be an event that bicyclists would find interesting, the closed-off streets would need to be at least a few miles long, and completely car free. But that length of street would make it less enjoyable for pedestrians, since huge stretches would feel empty and lifeless. Even 10,000 people on seven blocks of State Street had plenty of "quiet" areas.

 

I like the idea of bringing open streets events to the neighborhoods, but I think it would be very hard to distinguish an open streets event from just another street fair, and Chicagoans are saturated with those already from May through September. Even though neighborhood street fairs are only 3-6 blocks long, they are pedestrian-only areas, just like "Open Streets". So unless bicycling is truly well accommodated, how is an open streets event any different?

Permalink Reply by Steven Vance on October 4, 2011 at 8:42pm
I'm taking this idea a bit further and suggesting we make pedestrian only section of streets full time. They could be for 10 hours a day on certain days of the week in very busy areas. Like Damen between Wicker Park Avenue and North Avenue. Or on Milwaukee between Damen Avenue and Wood Street. 

Michelle Stenzel said:

I thought it was fun and would call it a success as well.

I like the idea of bringing open streets events to the neighborhoods, but I think it would be very hard to distinguish an open streets event from just another street fair, and Chicagoans are saturated with those already from May through September. Even though neighborhood street fairs are only 3-6 blocks long, they are pedestrian-only areas, just like "Open Streets". So unless bicycling is truly well accommodated, how is an open streets event any different?

Permalink Reply by yaj 7.4 on October 4, 2011 at 9:36pm

I volunteered at Open Streets and thought it was a great success.  I don't know if the middle of the street band was my favorite or watching the hard core looking skate punks teaching kids to skate. 

 

But I don't think it was a cycling event.

 

I think it is possible to have both biking and other activities.  Sunday's Bike the Ridge in Evanston was a smaller event, but it had a decent balance of cycling (up and down Ridge) and pedestrian activities (centered around a park in the middle of the route).

Permalink Reply by David on October 4, 2011 at 10:03pm

This predates my time in Chicago, but didn't State Street in the Loop used to be exactly like that (according to Wikipedia, between 1979 and 1996)?   As far as I can tell, it was considered at the time to be a failure, at least in terms of revitalizing the street, but I don't know much about it beyond what I've read.

 

Montreal closes a big chunk of Ste. Catherine st. to cars every summer and it's a huge success, but that's a street with a lot of bars, cafes and restaurants that expand into the street, creating a very lively pedestrian area.  I agree that Milwaukee or Damen could probably do something similar, but there just doesn't seem to be much on State St. to sustain that kind of thing.   

 

Of course, the problem in Wicker Park is that for a lot of people it's not easy to get to without driving, so if you drop a lot of parking it's hard to know how many people would stay away.  So much of Chicago seems built around an automobile infrastructure and mindset; it's going to take a lot of work to move away from that.  


Steven Vance said:

I'm taking this idea a bit further and suggesting we make pedestrian only section of streets full time. They could be for 10 hours a day on certain days of the week in very busy areas. Like Damen between Wicker Park Avenue and North Avenue. Or on Milwaukee between Damen Avenue and Wood Street. 


Permalink Reply by jennifer james on October 4, 2011 at 11:06pm

I'd call Saturday a big success especially in terms of getting more people to enjoy and consider what car free streets in any form might mean for them this spring and summer. I think that while it wasn't a cycling event per se it was a people on foot event with something for everyone-- even people just passing through that decided to stay.The crossing guards at Randolph St. told us they were excited to not work next time they have it and bring their kids. Now that's more like it.

Broadening the appeal of a free car free street is good for us all. Cyclists and walkers alike. I think that holding it in the center of the city was exciting and unexpected. I think the mood and cost free aspect  gave it a different feel from the usual street fair because of the mix of activities and the central nature of the street chosen. I loved the free bikes and all the skateboards out with the Opera. I really appreciate all the work that must have been poured into this.

I think there could be more please!. How about a city sponsored/ business partnership for a car free ciclovia Michigan Ave from the Gold Coast s curve to Bronzeville and beyond? There are plenty of museums, cultural orgs and big box along the whole way to grease the costs and get the mood going.

People set up impromptu picnics and parties, cafes and little happenings all along Park Ave. from the top of Manhattan to the bottom in New York last August during the Summer Streets and had a great time. We could do the same here. Every stretch of the street doesn't have to be covered with people every second for it to be a huge success.

Permalink Reply by jennifer james on October 4, 2011 at 11:33pm
Permalink Reply by Lizzy M. on October 5, 2011 at 8:31am

I LOVE the idea of pedestrian-only hours on some streets. I also strongly support the removal of on-street parking from many streets, in order to widen sidewalks, put in good bike lanes, and reduce through traffic congestion. The corner nearest my house, for instance, is less than 1/2 a mile from a red/brown/purple stop and is served by 4 bus lines (1 N-S, 1 E-W and 2 which turn). It's also less than 1/2 a mile from at least 4 more north-south bus lines (plus a couple more commute-time routes). It seems crazy to me that people who live here would drive here and the through traffic is just insane.

 

I remember when State Street was a pedestrian mall. The Loop was--as I remember it--a much different place then and more empty at night. There were less residence in the Loop; more things closed when people left work. I remember my parents always being nervous that I'd be in the Loop after dark. I think it was considered a failure in revitalizing the area, but I miss it.

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