Mapped: The Ghost Bikes of Chicago

Ghost bikes, sad, silent tribute to those killed while riding bikes, are more controversial than seems possible. The Chicago Tribune has a map that endeavors to track their locations around the Chicago area.

1 minute read

February 18, 2017, 11:00 AM PST

By James Brasuell @CasualBrasuell


Ghost bike in New York

Nick Gray / flickr

The Chicago Tribune has an interactive map of all the "ghost bikes" located around the region

Charles J. Johnson writes a passage explaining the significance of ghost bikes to accompany the map:

These "ghost bikes," old bicycles stripped of extraneous parts and painted white, are chained near the site of fatal cycling crashes. They serve as memorials to the deceased, but also as a statement for cyclist rights in areas where bikers share close quarters with faster, heavier automobiles. Sacred to some, and despised by others, ghost bikes have become a fixture of streetscapes in Chicago and around the world.

The post includes a caveat that there is no entity regulating the placement or maintenance of ghost bikes, and they are often removed by "those who dislike the practice." The Tribune also request more information, if available, about the location of ghost bikes.

Wednesday, February 15, 2017 in Chicago Tribune

portrait of professional woman

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban Planner

Use Code 25for25 at checkout for 25% off an annual plan!

Redlining map of Oakland and Berkeley.

Rethinking Redlining

For decades we have blamed 100-year-old maps for the patterns of spatial racial inequity that persist in American cities today. An esteemed researcher says: we’ve got it all wrong.

May 15, 2025 - Alan Mallach

Interior of Place Versailles mall in Montreal, Canada.

Montreal Mall to Become 6,000 Housing Units

Place Versailles will be transformed into a mixed-use complex over the next 25 years.

May 22, 2025 - CBC

Logo for Planetizen Federal Action Tracker with black and white image of U.S. Capitol with water ripple overlay.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker

A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

May 21, 2025 - Diana Ionescu

Flat modern glass office tower with "County of Santa Clara" sign.

Santa Clara County Dedicates Over $28M to Affordable Housing

The county is funding over 600 new affordable housing units via revenue from a 2016 bond measure.

May 23 - San Francisco Chronicle

Aerial view of dense urban center with lines indicating smart city concept.

Why a Failed ‘Smart City’ Is Still Relevant

A Google-backed proposal to turn an underused section of Toronto waterfront into a tech hub holds relevant lessons about privacy and data.

May 23 - Governing

Pale yellow Sears kit house with red tile roof in Sylva, North Carolina.

When Sears Pioneered Modular Housing

Kit homes sold in catalogs like Sears and Montgomery Ward made homeownership affordable for midcentury Americans.

May 23 - The Daily Yonder