Navy Pier Flyover meeting - Thursday night

Hey Chainlinkers,

We just got word of this meeting from CDOT. The "Flyover," if you're not aware of it, is basically a bridge for the Lakefront Trail that would go over Navy Pier eliminating the mixing of trail users, cars and pedestrians on the sidewalks near Navy Pier.

What:        Navy Pier Flyover Project

Who:         Chicago Department of Transportation (CDOT) and Alderman Reilly's
Office

When:       Thursday, July 15th, 2010 - 6:00 p.m. until 7:30 p.m.

Where:      Navy Pier-600 E. Grand Avenue
                 Festival Hall
                 Room 328
                 (Located on the east end of Navy Pier)

Thanks,
Ethan, with Active Trans

▶ Reply to This

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Julie Hochstadter on July 14, 2010 at 11:52am

I just added it to the calendar.

▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Active Transportation Alliance on July 14, 2010 at 12:09pm

Great, us too!

Unfortunate about the last-minute notice but this could be an important meeting for the bicycle community.

Active Trans will have staff attending and will keep everyone posted if you can't make it.

Thanks,
Ethan, with Active Trans

▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Active Transportation Alliance on July 15, 2010 at 2:24pm

Hey Chainlinkers, is anyone going to this meeting? Our staff rep may not be able to attend now (because of the last-minute notice) and we're hoping to connect with someone who's attending.

Thanks,
Ethan, with Active Trans

▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Sue Clark on July 15, 2010 at 2:44pm

I'm going to try to attend.

Active Transportation Alliance said:

Hey Chainlinkers, is anyone going to this meeting? Our staff rep may not be able to attend now (because of the last-minute notice) and we're hoping to connect with someone who's attending.

Thanks,
Ethan, with Active Trans

▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Cameron Puetz on July 15, 2010 at 3:17pm

I'm planning to attend.

Active Transportation Alliance said:

Hey Chainlinkers, is anyone going to this meeting? Our staff rep may not be able to attend now (because of the last-minute notice) and we're hoping to connect with someone who's attending.

Thanks,
Ethan, with Active Trans

▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Cameron Puetz on July 16, 2010 at 9:12am

Overall I was very impressed with CDOT’s plan. The basic plan is for a pair of 5 ft bike lanes framed by 3 ft pedestrian lanes to follow the course of Lake Shore Drive. CDOT appeared to have given a lot of thought to the details and had worked out many of the potential conflict points with merging traffic.

At the meeting there was some NIMBYism from Lake Point Tower residents, but the overall mood was that this should go forward. Also on positive note Alderman Reilly was convinced that being on the receiving end of most of the city’s commute it was in the downtown residents’ interest to encourage alternate transportation options. Not all of the residents were convinced, but he was working to sell them.

▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Active Transportation Alliance on July 16, 2010 at 10:13am

Thanks, Cameron...really appreciate the update!

We saw on the Critical Mass list that plans are supposed to be posted soon on Ald. Reilly's site:

http://www.ward42chicago.com/

Any other thoughts from anyone who attended?

Thanks much,
Ethan, with Active Trans

▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Joe TV on July 16, 2010 at 2:43pm

Very encouraging news!

▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Sue Clark on July 16, 2010 at 3:07pm

Agree with Cameron's comments. Looks like they thought things through. There's probably going to still be bottlenecks; making an already-popular spot more accessible/safer from cars seems like it would only increase the bike/pedestrian traffic in the area.

As for timing, if all goes forward work would begin next year and the project is expected to take 5 years. So, 2015, at soonest.

▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Active Transportation Alliance on July 16, 2010 at 3:09pm

Thanks much, you two! We're connecting more with Ald. Reilly so hopefully we'll get more advance notice as things move forward.

Ethan, with Active Trans

▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Kelly on July 18, 2010 at 9:07am

Here's a good link with details and a map for the project.
http://www.chicagobusiness.com/cgi-bin/article.pl?articleId=32362

▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Joel on July 18, 2010 at 9:41am

Why do I bother reading the user comments on bike-related articles on the web? Gah!!! Anyway, the project looks awesome and I really hope it goes through. That area is one reason why I always dread biking north during the day.

Kelly said: