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Permalink Reply by Steve Courtright on December 14, 2012 at 10:07am

Anne, that person in the white helmet next to the Mayor (actually closer to the Commissioner) is Christian VandeVelde!

Anne Alt said:

After the press conference - Mayor Emanuel and Commissioner Klein greeting folks at the start of the ride.

Riding the lanes

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Permalink Reply by Paul Michael Ignacio on December 14, 2012 at 10:09am

Hey, that's me on the mountain bike with the turned-down bars.  You can kinda see the basket on the rear rack, but too bad you can't see my pug George sitting in it.  The little guy had fun riding down from Rogers Park.

The lanes themselves are very well marked, the bike lights seem to be set up and timed well, and bikes are insulated from car traffic on Dearborn through the heart of the Loop, from Polk all the way north to Kinzie. 

Good to see all the cyclists present to inaugurate the lanes, but to be honest it was surprising to see that we were almost outnumbered by the media reporting on them.  Extra thanks to the City Bike Ambassadors posted on every corner to guide and caution crossing pedestrians as everybody gets used to the new lanes.

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Permalink Reply by Anne Alt on December 14, 2012 at 10:35am

That's right.  He was introduced at the start of the ride.

Steve Courtright said:

Anne, that person in the white helmet next to the Mayor (actually closer to the Commissioner) is Christian VandeVelde!

Anne Alt said:

After the press conference - Mayor Emanuel and Commissioner Klein greeting folks at the start of the ride.

Riding the lanes

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Permalink Reply by blair on December 14, 2012 at 11:09am

Funny you mention this.  A month or so ago, Rahm was hanging out just outside of the bike garage in Millenium Park.  I almost walked right past him.  He told me that was something he was working on next year - if a business has a certain number of employees, he wants to make bike parking mandatory.  He also mentioned a bike lane similar to Elston's for 3 miles of Milwaukee in 2013.

Joe Guzzardo said:

Woohoo! This is beyond awesomeness. Next, I'd like to see more cycling centers like the McDonald' center in Millennium Park, in the heat of the loop. New York City requires that public parking buildings reserve a certain percentage of garage space for bicycles. We should do the same.

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Permalink Reply by Anne Alt on December 14, 2012 at 11:29am

Christian VandeVelde's father, John, was also there today.  :)

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Permalink Reply by Lisa Curcio on December 14, 2012 at 11:40am

That press conference, riding the lanes, and watching everyone go by Daley Plaza was so much fun that I had a grin on my face all the way home.  I already sent e-mails to the powers that be, but I think I am going to take the time to write an actual letter to each of them.  I bet they don't get much in the way of letters anymore, and a handwritten letter might make even more of an impression than twits or tweets or whatever and e-mails. ;-)

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Permalink Reply by Joe Guzzardo on December 14, 2012 at 11:49am

Really? As my buddy Clint would say, you made my day! With the upgrade to this site and the greater publicity focused on city biking, both favorable and otherwise, we should step up our game. Plenty of studies have shown that biking is not only good for our health, but good for the local economy. In addition, more bicyclists make the streets safer for law abiding citizens. One small example, if we have more bicyclists on the roads, then we will have more police officers doing the same thing. Gang bangers can spot a cruiser far more easily than an officer on 2 wheels. I went to a neighborhood anti-crime meeting one day and the local police commander was there. One thing she said, that still resonates in my mind; "whoever walks the streets, owns the streets." She was referring to dog walkers, but the statement holds relevance to bicyclists as well. Personally, I'd rather pack tire changing gear than a handgun, even if I have the right to carry it. 

I'd read that Grubhub is relocating their offices to the loop and their employees demanded bike parking. It's cool to be part of a movement.

122782_ said:

Funny you mention this.  A month or so ago, Rahm was hanging out just outside of the bike garage in Millenium Park.  I almost walked right past him.  He told me that was something he was working on next year - if a business has a certain number of employees, he wants to make bike parking mandatory.  He also mentioned a bike lane similar to Elston's for 3 miles of Milwaukee in 2013.

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