Bus Lane Proposed for Chicago's Famous Lake Shore Drive

Chicago's Lakes Shore Drive (LSD) should get a bus lane, according to the Active Transit Alliance. Lake Shore Drive, which stretches along Chicago's beaches, might get more lanes near the planned Obama library, but at least one group thinks the highway should have fewer lanes for private vehicle traffic. "The letter is signed not only by the Active Transportation Alliance, which has been proposing such a step for years, but a broader group of organizations including the Environmental Law & Policy Center, Friends of the Parks, the Metropolitan Planning Council and the Lincoln Park and Lakeview chambers of commerce," Greg Hinz writes.

The Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) already runs a number of buses on the drive, but those buses can rarely move as fast as traffic."The CTA also runs a network of express buses that use the drive, including the 135, 145 and 147 routes. But like cars, they sometimes get caught in traffic," according to Hinz.

Chicago's buses are slowing down and the city lags well behind other American cities in miles of bus lanes, but this kind of plan would go a long way toward changing that.