Regarding the proposed reduction in the speed limit in Chicago from 30 mph to 25 mph, I have two suggestions. First, I would recommend that the Chicago police be allowed to pull people over and ticket them. This enforcement particularly would be helpful for those who drive at very high speeds on Chicago streets.
More practically, I suggest the reduced speed limit apply only during months when the city’s winter parking ban is not in place. The goal of the proposed reduction in the speed limit is to protect pedestrians and bikers. There are fewer pedestrians and bikers out on Chicago streets in the winter months. Some may say this would be too complicated, but the city currently enforces a parking ban on certain streets during winter months when 2 inches of snow or more fall on the ground. For the most part, Chicagoans navigate the winter-imposed parking ban (although on the first day or two it goes into effect, a few unfortunate souls are towed).
The 25 mph speed limit could go back up to 30 mph during the same months that the winter parking ban is in place. This seems like a practical solution, as driving at 30 mph, as long as people adhere to that limit, is not too fast during winter months when there are fewer pedestrians and bicyclists on the streets.
This practical approach might also sway aldermen currently opposed to the proposal.
— Clare Connor, Chicago
Lower speed limits equal gridlock
While I bemoan any traffic deaths, I doubt that reducing the speed limit from 30 mph to 25 mph will be effective to reduce them.
If the previous deaths were caused by drivers going faster than 30 mph, then they would be likely to exceed the new speed limit also and no reduction in deaths from these accidents would be projected.
If the previous deaths were caused by vehicles going legally between 26 to 30 mph, perhaps these vehicles might slow down. A few lives may be saved.
The lower speed limit leads to gridlock and excessive fines.
— Keith Dubas, Bloomingdale
What about speeders along lake?
Before voting to reduce city street speed limits from 30 mph to 25 mph, why doesn’t the city focus on the speeders on DuSable Lake Shore Drive who travel anywhere between 60 and 90 mph?
If the city is so desperate for funds that traffic fines become a solution, there should be no thought to giving the Bears (especially) or White Sox any monies to build their fantasy stadiums.
— Geri Ahlberg, Chicago
Chicago impresses tour takers
I have the pleasure of showing Chicagoans and visitors the beauty of Chicago and its architecture as a docent for the Chicago Architecture Center. The people taking my recent tour of Chicago’s First Skyscrapers were visitors from around the U.S. and world. As we walked through downtown Chicago, they commented on how clean the city is. I explained Chicago has an advantage over older cities because we have alleys where the garbage bins are located, but the people responded that even our alleys are clean! These visitors also talked about the beauty of the plantings along the street medians and sidewalks.
So kudos to the workers at the Department of Streets and Sanitation and the building owners and the workers they hire to sweep the sidewalks downtown, as well as both the city and the building owners who pay for the plantings. And kudos to visitors and locals alike who choose not to litter.
Thanks to you all, there are nine ambassadors from my tour that will go home spreading the word about how wonderful Chicago is and why their friends should also visit this city.
— Priscilla Mims, Chicago
Policy for birds doesn’t cut it
Thank you to the Tribune and Nara Schoenberg for the insightful and ultimately heartbreaking article on Chicago’s lack of safety measures for our migratory birds (“Policy doesn’t do enough to protect birds, advocates say,” May 1). It’s disheartening to live in a city that thinks so little of migratory birds that it fails, year after year, to mandate any meaningful safety protocols, as thousands of exhausted birds crash into buildings and die.
I would invite Chicago Department of Planning and Development Deputy Commissioner Peter Strazzabosco to bring his children out this weekend and help the Chicago Bird Collision Monitors and Chicago Bird Alliance scoop up all the dead and dying birds. Then he can explain to his children why the city’s policy update is such a good and thoughtful “option.”
— Susan M. Sullivan, Chicago
Chicago Sky are set to conquer
Last year, the Tribune published a letter I wrote on the WNBA (“Chicagoans and the WNBA,” Sept. 1). In it, I stated that “the WNBA is one season away from getting Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese. Clark and Reese will automatically make two other WNBA teams top contenders.”
At the time, I had accepted that the Chicago Sky would not be one of those teams, as then-Chicago Sky coach and general manager James Wade sold off our draft capital before leaving for the NBA. There seemed to be zero chance of the Sky benefiting from the tidal wave of talent that was about to crash onto the shores of the WNBA.
And yet, seven months and a few key trades later, the Chicago Sky had a historic draft, snagging twin towers Kamilla Cardoso and Reese, the two people most responsible for Clark leaving the University of Iowa without a championship, and Brynna Maxwell, one of the best shooters coming out of college. They join Diamond DeShields, who returns to the city where she was an all-star rookie before trades and injuries took her off course, fan favorite Dana Evans and clutch player Marina Mabrey, among others.
This is a lineup that can go toe to toe with the best of the WNBA. And the best is what they will get: Along with A’ja Wilson and her two-time champion Las Vegas Aces, our Chicago Sky will be battling the likes of the New York Liberty, with MVP Breanna Stewart and 3-point sensation Sabrina Ionescu, and the Los Angeles Sparks, which also scored big in the 2024 draft by selecting Cameron Brink and Rickea Jackson, both of whom would have been the top pick in almost any other year. And of course, they will also take on the Indiana Fever and their dynamic duo, Clark and Aliyah Boston.
Our players will give them all fits. Like Chicago itself, they are gritty and determined. They take a beating and get back up. Constantly underestimated, always ready to prove themselves, they will no doubt find a way to win.
As a third-year season ticket holder, I have never been so excited about the start of a WNBA season. I have never been so excited about a sports team, period. The Chicago Sky are destined to be the next team to turn our beloved city into Titletown, with a lot of fireworks along the way.
— Mike Belle, Cicero
Rail possibilities after upgrade
Thanks for pointing out the new South Shore Line success (“All aboard the newly expanded South Shore Line,” May 2). These upgraded electric-powered double tracks provide a real opportunity for expanded service from Chicago to the East, especially as Amtrak struggles to bring in trains over freight-owned or controlled tracks into Union Station.
Imagine inviting Brightline, the company building high-speed trains from Las Vegas to Los Angeles, to build high-speed tracks from this beautiful new asset to South Bend all the way to the Acela line on the East Coast.
— Dan Johnson, Wilmette
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