As recurrent Streetsblog audience know, the Chicago Section of Transportation just lately put in a stretch of curbside safeguarded bicycle lanes operating 1.8 miles by way of the Pullman group space, in the 9th Ward. The PBLs curved concerning 100th Street and Woodlawn Avenue around Olive Harvey School, and 111th Avenue and Doty Avenue in close proximity to a Walmart Supercenter. The bikeway is positioned on the other facet of Lake Calumet from Big Marsh bike park.
Nevertheless, by past January CDOT experienced removed significantly of the concrete protections. “The pre-forged concrete curbs ended up taken off from the Doty bicycle lane in coordination with [local alderperson Anthony Beale (9th)] due to drainage challenges,” section spokesperson Erica Schroeder instructed Streetsblog in February.
But Southeast Aspect transportation advocates explained this explanation was doubtful, mainly because the Doty precast concrete curbs appeared to have spacing that allowed rainwater to drain, and they’d hardly ever witnessed flooding there following a storm. Some suspected that the authentic purpose for the removals was to facilitate trucking at a regional Amazon warehouse, and maybe other nearby workplaces.
No matter of which story was exact, there’s just one point for confident. Now that there’s nothing at all on Doty to guard bicycle riders from perilous drivers other than paint and flimsy plastic posts, it’s a whole lot much more risky to experience bicycles there. Go through much more track record on the issue below.
There was a new wrinkle on this tale when the CTA lately declared it would be location up store in a now-vacant South Aspect building as portion of its planned Crimson Line Extension venture. The composition is positioned at 11203 S. Corliss Ave. in Pullman, only about a block south of the stretch of Doty wherever the bicycle lane curbs had been taken out. It would incorporate office environment area and storage for building equipments.
Intrigued by that information, very last month I despatched a Freedom of Facts Act request to CDOT for any e-mail sent concerning January 1 and March 5 that integrated the division’s Finish Streets Director David Smith and the phrase “Doty”. Smith oversees bike and pedestrian security initiatives.
The trove of messages CDOT eventually despatched me incorporated older discussions in between transportation section staffers and/or design contractors about taking away and storing the Doty/Woodlawn curbs. They didn’t say why the concrete infrastructure was currently being taken off. But in a November 7, 2023 email, Theodore Mossman, a development rep at Alfred Benesch & Firm, observed, “CDOT would like to take out the items from Woodlawn as quickly as achievable.”
In a February 8 e mail, CDOT Commissioner Tom Carney requested Dave Smith and deputy commissioners Vig Krishnamurthy and Michael Drake, “Did we ever repurpose the curbs that we eliminated off of Doty in [the] 9th Ward?”
“Indeed, these were put in on the Broadway/Aldine and Wrightwood spots,” Drake replied. The former presumably refers to adding security to a formerly non-safeguarded hyperlink in a Neighborhood Greenway (largely) aspect street bicycle route in Lakeview, to stop motorists from blocking the bikeway. I haven’t decided exactly where on Wrightwood Avenue he was speaking about, but I’ll update this submit when I obtain out.
Curiously, the response to my FOIA request displays that on February 14 somebody submitted one more FOIA query similar to the Doty suppress installations and removals to CDOT. “I am seeking data that display any contracts with 3rd get together vendors or metropolis costs for the set up of the safeguarded bicycle lane on Doty Ave in 2023, and the subsequent removing of the protected bicycle lane on Doty Ave in 2024,” the ask for mentioned. “I am seeking to recognize how much the city invested to put in and then take away these bicycle lanes, so I will accept any records that can display the charge for each the installation and uninstallation of these bicycle lanes.”
That day CDOT FOIA officer Gary Rubenstein sent the earlier mentioned question to Krishnamurthy, who forwarded it to Dave Smith. “Dave, please see hooked up and [let me know] if you’d like to talk about,” Krishnamurthy wrote.
The February 14 FOIA ask for was handed close to to different CDOT officials. The most the latest email was on February 28 from Civil Engineer Conan Chan to colleagues and contractors. “Has Doty/Woodlawn from 111th to the Expressway precast bike lane set up value been finalized/finished?” he wrote. “Can you give me the cost?” The other e-mail in the trove the section sent Streetsblog don’t offer that variety.
So there you have it. Even though Streetsblog’s FOIA request didn’t address the riddle of irrespective of whether the Doty shielded curbs have been actually eradicated because of to flooding, as CDOT claimed, or to aid driving, as advocates suspected. But we did get some info about what’s been likely on driving the scenes. And possibly we’ll get some far more intel from the other FOIA submitter quoted earlier mentioned, probable this individual:
So Alec, if you’ve gotten any further info about the Doty donnybrook, make sure you pour the tea!
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The post Control your enthusiasm: Our FOIA request didn’t fix the Doty dilemma, but we bought some intriguing intel appeared initial on Streetsblog Chicago.