Chicago Wants Bike Sharing to Reach All Parts of City

Chicago has been awarded $2.5 million to support efforts addressing climate change, through the American Cities Climate Challenge, part of Bloomberg Philanthropies. Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s office says part of this funding will go toward expanding Chicago’s bike-share network out to the entire city.

“Divvy, the largest bike-sharing program operating in Chicago, has faced challenges in reaching all parts of the city even with expansions into additional South and West Side neighborhoods in recent years,” reports Alex Ruppenthal. The Divvy system currently operates in Chicago and Evanston with 6,000 bicycles available at more than 570 stations, and the full-city expansion may include Divvy or use another program, says Ruppenthal.

In addition to bike sharing, the city wants to put into place policies to encourage car sharing and public transit use. It also will focus on renewable energy, energy efficiency, and the development of programs and infrastructure for solar and electric vehicles.