Bicycle Friendly Community

Chicago, IL | Silver Level

Community Highlights:Mayor Daley has made the goal to make the City of Chicago the most bicycle-friendly city in the United States. Bicycling Ambassadors teach drivers how to interact safely with cyclists, teach 30,000 children each summer and attend community events to deliver bike safety and road sharing information. The city's pro-bicycling policies and growing bike culture have resulted in a steadily increasing rate of bicycling. The ambitious 2015 Bike Plan's overall goals are to increase bicycle use so five percent of all trips under five miles are by bicycle and to reduce the number of bicycle injuries by 50 percent.

Most Compelling Community Statistic: The bikeway network has grown from 75 miles to 350 miles in the past 15 years. The city has a strong partnership with the Active Transportation Alliance whose staff manage many of the city's bicycling programs.

"Creating bicycle-friendly communities is one of the smartest investments a city can make for the health of its residents and environment. The more Chicago can make bicycling accessible to all of its residents, the healthier and more productive the city will be. From bike lanes to bicyclists' rights, Chicago is on its way to become even more bicycle-friendly." Rob Sadowsky, Executive Director, Active Transportation Alliance.