Chicago is bike-friendly, but it’s unfriendly to cars
July 31, 2011 7:02PM
Traffic moves eastbound along the new bike path on Kinzie St. between Orleans and Wells during morning rush hour Thursday, June 23, 2011. | Ernie Torres~Sun-Times
Updated: November 2, 2011 3:35PM
I am both a bike rider and a car driver.
As a biker, I enjoy the exclusive use of bike lanes, though I am far outnumbered by drivers. For this, I pay nothing. I can ride as fast as I can pedal, and congestion is seldom a problem.
As a driver, I get exclusive use of only Lake Shore Drive and the expressways. I share the rest of the streets with bikers. In Chicago, traffic is often congested, and the congestion is only getting worse.
City officials want to make travel even slower by making some lanes narrower and offering little or no space for drivers to go around those who are waiting to make a left turn.
For this I pay in high gas taxes, a driver’s license, license plate, city sticker, the highest parking meter rates in the U.S., parking tickets, towing fees, red light camera tickets, etc.
Chicago is the most bike-friendly city in the United States. It is probably the most car-unfriendly city, too.
Larry E. Nazimek,
Logan Square
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