I've been looking forward to the new train service planned between Chicago and Madison, Wis. So I was disappointed to hear that Scott Walker, a Republican candidate for Governor in Wisconsin, has launched a major attack against passenger trains in Wisconsin. Please ask your friends in Wisconsin to show their support for passenger rail expansion.

Wisconsin was awarded Recovery Act funds to extend the successful Amtrak Hiawatha from Milwaukee to Madison. Walker has promised to stop construction if he is elected.

This week, he held an anti-train rally in Milwaukee and began running TV ads promising to "stop this train." He even set up a special website: http://www.NoTrain.com

The Midwest High Speed Rail Association has set up an action page where Wisconsin residents can show their support. Please show your support for Amtrak expansion at:

http://www.midwesthsr.org/wisconsin

From Thechainlink.org, a social network for cyclists in Chicago. Thought this would be a great place to share car free thoughts....

Link is here, but I have also posted the question below. -

http://www.thechainlink.org/forum/topics/people-who-do-not-own-cars?page...

Quite a few threads have me wondering what your lifestyle is like that it doesn’t necessitate owning a car. I think it is great that you are able to live car free, but I am wondering how this is. Many people have expressed the feeling of freedom that comes with not owning car, but for me it feels like a lack of.

I noticed the other day that CDOT had adjusted traffic lights at a couple intersections on my street to give pedestrians a few seconds head start to begin crossing before cars get a green light. This is called a Leading Pedestrian Interval, or LPI (check out this Streetsblog video about LPIs). This is one of those many progressive things I've read about other cities doing and wished I'd see at home. So I'm happy to see this tool being used in Chicago as the city learns that pedestrians should be the priority on our streets.

Studio Murmur is a product design firm based in Chicago. We currently seek to engage individuals, organizations and city /state transportation officials in launching a bike parking initiative to design the next generation of bicycle racks in Chicago. Similar efforts have been successful in Toronto and New York City and smaller initiatives are underway in other cities. Secure and easy-to-use parking for a wide range of bicycles is a non-trivial problem that is not sufficiently addressed by many current rack designs. If you are someone, or know someone, who can help, please contact us at info@studiomurmur.net Thanks!

I thought it was time to revisit the Queen's Landing crosswalk following last month's approval of the updated Central Area Action Plan. You may recall that this crosswalk connecting Buckingham Fountain to Lake Michigan was closed back in July 2005. Well, slipped in among the costly major infrastructure projects outlined in the plan is a small item about a crosswalk with a $500,000 price tag. No massive overdone bridge over LSD as had been discussed following the crosswalk closing -- just a simple way to cross the street at Queen's Landing and restore a critical connection between the Lake and Grant Park. A bridge or an underpass would be an over-engineered and overpriced solution to getting people across the street.