Bicycle Infrastructure
When we drive in the suburbs, there are things we generally don't have to think about. Our trips start from a garage or driveway. If we live in an apartment or townhouse, the association provides an asphalt parking lot. On the way to our destination, we travel on well-worn roads provided by local and county governments. When we get to our destination, in the suburbs there is generally lots of parking available. Stratford Mall alone has about 5,500 parking spaces for potential shoppers!
For the past 50 years, Carol Stream and the surrounding suburbs have followed a simple rule to economic success: make it easy for people to drive to where they need to go, and commercial success will follow.
To prepare Carol Stream for an uncertain energy future, and to encourage its residents to undertake forms of active transportation to increase exercise and reduce the incidence of obesity, Carol Stream Bikes calls for the construction of an infrastructure that supports bicyclists, walkers, joggers and inline-skaters--at a fraction of the cost of dedicated infrastructure for vehicles.
In bicycle planning, bicycle infrastructure falls under two categories. The first is the network of bike lanes, paths and roads that bicyclists may travel on when traveling from one destination to the next. The second is the availability of parking at these destinations.
Bike Parking
Click here to read about bike parking!
Advocacy efforts
In March 2010, Carol Stream Bikes sent out a petition to improve the County Farm Road @ Great Western Trail grade crossing. Read about it here!