John Hennessy III,
P.E.
An interactive map from the Wall Street Journal displays the severity of the flooding currently happening in the US Midwest, where “Monday evening, the Ohio River gauge at Cairo read 61.44 feet, nearly two feet higher than the record of 59.51 feet set in 1937.”
View this complete post...If you’ve ever ventured out into one of Chicago’s famous six-corner intersections, you know the streets don’t always feel safe. The facts bear this out. In 2009 there were over 4,500 crashes between Chicago drivers and pedestrians or cyclists, 35 of which were fatal. This is according to the Illinois Department of Transportation, which tracks traffic statistics.
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CYCLINGMOBILITY
To the uninitiated, Chicago seems like an unlikely place for cyclists, and with good reason. It’s big: with almost 3 million residents, it’s the third largest city in the United States. It’s intimidating: Chicago’s nearly 596 square kilometers of land area are latticed with congested streets and highways. And its weather is far from cyclist-friendly: the city’s bipolar climate fluctuates between teeth-chattering, snow-spattering winters and sweat-drizzling, sidewalk-sizzling summers. But even so, this metropolis reached a bicycle commuter mode share of 1.15% in 2009 – an increase of 129% since 2000.
CHADDICK INSTITUTE FOR METROPOLITAN DEVELOPMENT, DEPAUL UNIVERSITY
Intercity bus service in the United States remained robust through 2010 as a result of rising travel demand, escalating fuel prices, and investments in new routes. These and other factors propelled motor coach travel to its highest level in years and made the intercity bus the country’s fastest growing mode of transportation for the third year in the row.“Curbside operators,” including BoltBus, DC2NY Bus, and Megabus, which eschew traditional stations in favor of curbside pickup and provide customers access to Wifi and other previously unavailable amenities, enjoyed particular success. Express services linking major cities in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic states grew at a particularly rapid rate.
The Illinois Department of Transportation has reached a cooperative agreement with Union Pacific and Amtrak that will permit the release of a $1.1 billion federal high-speed rail grant to the state of Illinois to fund passenger rail improvements between Chicago and St. Louis. The agreement was proclaimed by state and federal officials as “historic” and hailed as “one giant step closer to achieving high-speed passenger service between Chicago and St. Louis.” But stripped of its rhetoric, the announcement only reveals how inadequate and cost-ineffective the Administration’s “high–speed” program is turning out to be.
View this complete post...120 Vestas V82 Windmills are scattered throughout the country side just east of Bloomington Illinois. At a cost of $1.6 Million each they provide power to 60,000 homes. Another 100 turbines are being erected at Carlock. White Oak Energy Center is between Peoria and Bloomington. This video shows the Twin Groves Wind farm and some of the new construction at Carlock.
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ILLINOIS PIRG
In building a 21st century economy, the Midwest is hampered by an outdated transportation system. Congested airports and crammed highways hinder travel around the region. As the main source of our dependence on oil, our transportation system leaves us vulnerable to oil price spikes and pollution…Intercity passenger rail in the Midwest can be part of the solution.
LEAGUE OF AMERICAN BICYCLISTS
Bicycling advocates can help shape Climate Action Plans to include pro‐bicycling policies. Using case studies and examples from existing plans, this report examines: 1. how pro‐bicycling policies have been written into the Climate Action Plans of states, cities, and universities, 2. examples of plans that include bicycling, 3. how bicycling advocates can best support these efforts, and 4. how to ensure that governments follow through on the promises made in their plans.
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