iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Reposted by Car Free Keith

Steven @stevevance.net · 15/10/2026

I think 50 of us have already taken this exact photo

Car Free Keith @carfreekeith.bsky.social · 12/10/2026

Up until 2023 Jeff Parish Transit’s E1 bus used to run all the way downtown past the Cemeteries, now people have to transfer from the bus to the streetcar to make that trip so it’s way worse. But a good example of the streetcars being used by real commuters!

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Car Free Keith @carfreekeith.bsky.social · 12/10/2026

I think they could do with less frequent stops too. On St Charles especially that seems to really invite bunching

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Car Free Keith @carfreekeith.bsky.social · 12/10/2026

I used to live a 10min walk from the Cemeteries terminal, good times

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Car Free Keith @carfreekeith.bsky.social · 10/10/2026

First time on the SWS after eating at @nerd4cities.bsky.social ’s favorite dining establishment tonight

Metra SWS platform for 143rd/Orland Park at sunset.

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Car Free Keith @carfreekeith.bsky.social · 09/10/2026

We need so many SROs that “you won’t even notice“ they’re there

Elwood’s single room occupancy unit from the Blues Brothers film

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Reposted by Car Free Keith

Satoru Inoue @satoruinoue.com · 04/10/2026

took a crack at figuring out bus speed on Michigan Ave Mansueto data as before. 30 days (6/28 to 7/28). Plotting minutes per mile—higher is slower/more time can definitely make the case for extension to Mag Mile. but NB between Ida B Wells & Wacker is BAD when it's bad

Speed (or its inverse, minutes per mile) plotted for Michigan Ave bus stops, for both northbound (left panel) and southbound (right panel), for Mon-Thu between 3-6 pm. Plot goes from Roosevelt to Chicago Ave.

Northbound:
Median speed is ~12 mph at Roosevelt, and decreases to ~6 mph between Ida B. Wells and Madison, and stays there until Chicago. 95th percentile in min/mi (5th percentile in speed) is ~10 at Roosevelt and rises to ~28 just south of Madison, and stays above 20 for most of the way until Chicago.

Southbound:
Median speed is ~5 mph at Chicago, and steadily increases to ~12 mph at Roosevelt. 95th percentile in min/mi (5th percentile in speed) is ~21 at Chicago, peaks at ~32 between Madison and Wacker, and decreases to ~12 at Roosevelt.

Speed (or its inverse, minutes per mile) plotted for Michigan Ave bus stops, for both northbound (left panel) and southbound (right panel), for Fri between 3-6 pm. Plot goes from Roosevelt to Chicago Ave.

Northbound:
Median speed is ~10 mph at Roosevelt, and decreases to ~5 mph between Ida B. Wells and Madison, and stays there until Chicago. 95th percentile in min/mi (5th percentile in speed) is ~12 at Roosevelt and rises to ~30 just south of Madison, and stays ~19 for most of the way until Chicago.

Southbound:
Median speed is ~5 mph at Chicago, and steadily increases to ~10 mph at Roosevelt. 95th percentile in min/mi (5th percentile in speed) is ~25 at Chicago, peaks at ~31 between Madison and Wacker, and decreases to ~12 at Roosevelt.

Speed (or its inverse, minutes per mile) plotted for Michigan Ave bus stops, for both northbound (left panel) and southbound (right panel), for Sat-Sun between 3-6 pm. Plot goes from Roosevelt to Chicago Ave.

Northbound:
Median speed is ~10 mph at Roosevelt, and decreases to ~5 mph around Madison, and goes back up to ~6 mph before Wacker and mostly stays there until Chicago. 95th percentile in min/mi (5th percentile in speed) is ~15 at Roosevelt and rises to ~39 just south of Madison, and stays between 15-20 from Wacker to Chicago.

Southbound:
Median speed is ~5 mph at Chicago, and steadily increases to ~10 mph at Roosevelt. 95th percentile in min/mi (5th percentile in speed) is ~21 at Chicago, there are no large peaks, and steadily decreases to ~10 at Roosevelt.

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Reposted by Car Free Keith

Kara Transit Authority @stormykara.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

I rode a CTA express route that only makes five stops going northbound while I work on the next Ticket To Illinois episode here I throw this at you and run away youtu.be/KubJ99xuEPo

youtu.be

The CTA Route With The Least Stops

YouTube video by Stormy Kara

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Car Free Keith @carfreekeith.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

And yes my next video, my 20th one, is about the Madison bus. But not the one in Chicago

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Car Free Keith @carfreekeith.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

Madison, WI launched its BRT in Sept 2024. Frequencies were still the same 15 mins, but the high quality bus lanes/stations, speed gains, & nicer 60-ft buses led to 20% higher ridership in the first 2 months YoY. Treat bus riders w/ dignity & they respond!

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Reposted by Car Free Keith

Michael McLean @michaelmclean.me · 30/09/2026

The biggest victory here isnt even the bus lane itself. Its a victory over The Process: - make a committee - meet with The Groups - make a report - start a non-binding referendum - make a pilot - make a report - make a plan - deploy a few years later People are SICK of this.

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Car Free Keith @carfreekeith.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

There’d be a lot of conflicts tho with so many major streets being at the same position north/west. Like does Western or Fullerton get to be the true 24? lol

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Car Free Keith @carfreekeith.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

Just to add onto this it’d be cool if every bus route was numbered based on its grid position like they do in Phoenix. I probably wouldn’t advocate for changing it now but it’d be neat

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Car Free Keith @carfreekeith.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

It seemed like it was soooo much busier out there yesterday than any other MMoM day. Love to see it

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Car Free Keith @carfreekeith.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

Not technically Chicago proper, but I have a strange affinity for all the southernmost neighborhoods and inner southern burbs of Chicago because of a lot of scenes like this. Nature mingled with industry.

View from the bridge over the Cal Sag canal in Blue Island, IL.

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Car Free Keith @carfreekeith.bsky.social · 26/09/2026

It never ceases to amaze me how vast Chicago’s South Side is

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Reposted by Car Free Keith

Lena G R @lenagr.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

Director Alvarez asks what you'd do if you could do something bold to improve transit? CTA answers dedicated bus lanes, we're way behind our peer municipalities. A bold goal of 100-150 miles of dedicated lanes would be transformative. Ridership #s showing people want to ride the bus! 🚌👏

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Car Free Keith @carfreekeith.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

Yeah, in order for it to be considered “true BRT” not only does it have to score 20 in the basics, it apparently needs a 4/7 minimum in busway alignment. Sheesh.

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Car Free Keith @carfreekeith.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

I would love to be wrong about this and find out it scores above 20 so I can go through the whole scoring system out of 100 pts, so let me know if you think I didn’t do it right!

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Car Free Keith @carfreekeith.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

It scores just short of 18, and is really limited by the lack of dedicated lanes for almost half of the route by my calculations. And some of the lane configurations aren’t center aligned. Still really looking forward to exploring this system soon & seeing the whole nuanced picture.

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Car Free Keith @carfreekeith.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

Working on a Madison BRT video and wanted to try and score their system based on the ITDP BRT Scorecard. I was even a bit generous with the points in some areas, but it still falls short of the 20 pts in the “BRT Basics” category to be considered “true BRT” per ITDP.

Table showing Madison BRT scoring almost 18 points according to the ITDP BRT scorecard system.

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Car Free Keith @carfreekeith.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

The UP-N within Chicago city limits is basically teleportation

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Car Free Keith @carfreekeith.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

Thanks for the kind words David!

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Reposted by Car Free Keith

David Bickford @exit2lef.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

Rigorously researched, balanced video about the good, bad, and ugly of #Phoenix past, present, and future. Nice to see guest appearances by my friends Jamie and Skitch.

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Car Free Keith @carfreekeith.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

New video! This month we’re going to Phoenix to explore a 2023 study that halted new suburban developments due to overuse of the groundwater. Is transit the answer? Watch to find out (it is) youtu.be/fTavdZv7khk?...

youtu.be

Phoenix Can't Keep Growing Like This

YouTube video by Car Free Keith

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Car Free Keith @carfreekeith.bsky.social · 13/09/2026

My train has been stopped at this junction for 20 mins, that’s probably good right?

Train 4 on a map located a few miles west of Galesburg, IL

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Car Free Keith @carfreekeith.bsky.social · 13/09/2026

People don’t need transit on Sundays silly :-)

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Reposted by Car Free Keith

Chicago 🏳️‍⚧️🌱 @chicagotrans-plant.bsky.social · 12/09/2026

Alrighty I just crashed my bike (a little! I'm fine! It's fine!) but I am a bit shaken up so I'm not gonna do anything productive so let's talk about the far north side CTA routes: There are 3 far north side CTA routes: - 151 - 49b - 148 All others are derivatives Let's begin.

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Car Free Keith @carfreekeith.bsky.social · 12/09/2026

Ugh, wish I could make this one :(

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Reposted by Car Free Keith

Joseph Miscimarra 🇺🇸 @jmisci.bsky.social · 11/09/2026

Best editorial I’ve seen all year from the Chicago Tribune yesterday. It’s undeniable that local communities have historically been excluded from consequential decisions, but the pendulum has swung too far in the other direction. We now live in an era defined by weaponized resistance to change.

editorial: Northwestern's Ryan Field, Amtrak, Emanuel, Quantum, O'Hare Flyer all beset by objectors

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Car Free Keith @carfreekeith.bsky.social · 10/09/2026

jeez Louise, what are we doing here

Blue Line schedule showing trains in 3 minutes and 29 minutes

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Car Free Keith @carfreekeith.bsky.social · 09/09/2026

Yeah I’ve never heard of a deal so sweet honestly. Can’t believe they’re turning it down, but at the same time I also can

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Reposted by Car Free Keith

Joseph Miscimarra 🇺🇸 @jmisci.bsky.social · 05/09/2026

I’ll say it again: Every time Illinois state representatives choose not to expand multifamily housing rights, they admit they’re okay with Texas snatching our electoral votes. Local housing micromanagement is ensuring Republican dominance for years to come. Time for the state to crack down.

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Car Free Keith @carfreekeith.bsky.social · 05/09/2026

I fear I have the “will it play in Peoria” middle of the road dialect www.nytimes.com/interactive/...

NY Times dialect quiz showing similarities between Omaha, Toledo, and Ft Wayne

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Reposted by Car Free Keith

Chicago 🏳️‍⚧️🌱 @chicagotrans-plant.bsky.social · 05/09/2026

To quote @carfreekeith.bsky.social, "you're riding the CTA infrequent network, arriving in 46 minutes or less, all day, every day"

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Car Free Keith @carfreekeith.bsky.social · 04/09/2026

It was so funny* hearing people say exactly that at the 1704 N Milwaukee community meetings for a 7 story building. *infuriating

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Car Free Keith @carfreekeith.bsky.social · 04/09/2026

Apparently they’ve eliminated the slow zones

A Transit app trip summary showing a Purple Line trip at 264 mph.

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Car Free Keith @carfreekeith.bsky.social · 04/09/2026

I just took the Red Express to the Local Purple (transferred from NB Red to NB Purple so at Fullerton so I could get off at Wellington)

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Car Free Keith @carfreekeith.bsky.social · 03/09/2026

i didn’t know about that but seems like a good thing! I think I agree with your take on it, seems like a good step to build at least a little more expansion focus in-house even if it’s at the top of the system. And thanks for the kind words!

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Car Free Keith @carfreekeith.bsky.social · 02/09/2026

They already have the best QC style pizza joint imo (Frank’s)

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Reposted by Car Free Keith

NITA Chicago @nitachicago.bsky.social · 01/09/2026

New agency, who dis? 💁‍♀️ NITA.Illinois.gov

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Car Free Keith @carfreekeith.bsky.social · 01/09/2026

@nitachicago.bsky.social is officially live, what a day! If you wanna learn more about what NITA is and what it could do, watch this video I made back in June: youtu.be/eH-ZsEoGu_g?...

youtu.be

The Most Dramatic Transit Reform in America

YouTube video by Car Free Keith

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