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Resident urges enforcement after frequent bike-lane blockages on Church Street
Summary
At the Feb. 9 Evanston Administration & Public Works Committee meeting, Scott Roberts urged enforcement of blocked bike lanes on Church Street, citing a Bike Uprising heat map and photos showing repeated, unattended vehicles obstructing the lane and creating safety hazards for cyclists and pedestrians.
At the Feb. 9 Administration & Public Works Committee meeting, Scott Roberts, a member of the public, told the committee that bike lanes on Church Street are often blocked and called for stronger enforcement.
Roberts said he used the Bike Uprising app to map incidents and submitted photographs showing unattended vehicles repeatedly parked in the bike lane. "The bike lanes are often blocked," Roberts said. "When it's blocked, bikers go onto the street where it's dangerous or they go onto the sidewalk where it's dangerous both for them and for people on the sidewalk." He said Church Street showed a higher concentration of reports than other parts of the city.
Roberts described collecting recent examples — including photos taken when driving a child from ETHS and during an errand near Whole Foods — and urged the committee to consider measures other cities use to reduce lane obstructions and improve enforcement of tow zones.
Committee Chair Council Member Claire Kelly thanked Roberts for documenting the incidents and providing photos and data, saying the committee appreciated the submission. The committee did not take action during the meeting; public comment concluded and the agenda moved on.
The committee did not specify next steps during the meeting. Residents seeking to report blocked bike lanes may continue to document incidents and provide evidence to city staff or the committee for follow-up.
