iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Thomas Bamonte @thomasbamonte.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

There is now irregular access to the grounds on both sides of Cortland that once housed Finkl's steelworks and related facilities and is planned to be developed into Foundry Park. An interesting landscape with lots of native plants that is worth a visit before it's gone. jdlcorp.com/projects/fou...

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Thomas Bamonte @thomasbamonte.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

Mark your calendars: On Sunday, October 18 @bikegridnow.org is "hosting a concert with local bands from 3-7 pm on The People’s Bridge™ (Cortland) in support of the permanent pedestrianization and continuation of bicycle-only access." bikegridnow.org/events/

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Thomas Bamonte @thomasbamonte.bsky.social · 03/10/2026

In assessing whether and how to introduce AVs in Illinois folks should not assume that the status quo of vehicles with human drivers is working well, as the Chicago Crash Dashboard @strongtownschicago.bsky.social indicates. www.strongtownschicago.org/chicago-cras...

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Thomas Bamonte @thomasbamonte.bsky.social · 03/10/2026

Notably, HB4663: (i) states that AVs "are governed exclusively by this Act;" (ii) makes @illinoisdot.bsky.social "the sole and exclusive State agency that may implement the provisions of this Act;" and (iii) preempts home rule municipalities like Chicago from regulating AVs.

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Thomas Bamonte @thomasbamonte.bsky.social · 03/10/2026

Co-sponsor of Northern Illinois Transit Authority reform legislation and sponsor of pending automated vehicle legislation @ilstaterepbuckner.bsky.social calls on NITA to begin planning now for the integration of AVs into NEIL public transportation system. citizennewspapergroup.com/news/2026/oc...

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Thomas Bamonte @thomasbamonte.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

Oddly, even though the lead author is from the University of Chicago, the study does not include Chicago's performance data. Link: evansoltas.com/papers/Durat...

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Thomas Bamonte @thomasbamonte.bsky.social · 24/09/2026

California Legislature passes AB 2074, which seeks to revitalize dense, downtown districts in seven cities across California by creating new, streamlined standards for “high rise housing” near transit. cayimby.org/news-events/...

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Thomas Bamonte @thomasbamonte.bsky.social · 24/09/2026

Are the green areas zoned for high-density residences/jobs? When approving use of federal funds for the Red Line Extension Project did the MPO consider whether zoning along the RLE allows residence/job density and facilitates bike/ped connections that MPO deems necessary to build transit ridership?

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Thomas Bamonte @thomasbamonte.bsky.social · 23/09/2026

The full Accelerate Plan found here: wwww.septa.org/initiatives/...

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Thomas Bamonte @thomasbamonte.bsky.social · 23/09/2026

Thus, Sec. 2.06 appears to apply to any non-federal government body that operates a road in the NITA region, including IDOT and its roads. At the very minimum, Sec. 2.06 applies to roads controlled by home rule municipalities and counties through Sec. 5.02 of the NITA Act.

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Thomas Bamonte @thomasbamonte.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

"In the Chicago metro area, CoStar forecasts that 11.5 million square feet (1.1 million square meters) of office space, the equivalent of almost 10 Aon Centers, will be demolished through 2031."

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Thomas Bamonte @thomasbamonte.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

Transit provides affordable transportation. Good transit requires clustering people and destinations around transit. Toronto: Residential development: 46 stories/512 homes/23 car parking spaces; Mixed residential/office/commercial: five buildings b/w 45-65 stories/2900 homes/774 car parking spaces.

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Thomas Bamonte @thomasbamonte.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

Toronto: Dedicated bike trail into train station (Mount Dennis/Line 5). There is a lock-protected indoor bike parking area integrated into the station. Guide: “We’re building active transportation into all of our stations.”

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Thomas Bamonte @thomasbamonte.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

The City of Toronto's population is projected to grow by over 400,000 people (and taxpayers) by 2050. The Toronto metro area will eclipse the Chicago metro population before them. CMAP is projecting Chicago metro population to start declining in about 2040. cmap.illinois.gov/wp-content/u...

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Thomas Bamonte @thomasbamonte.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

Toronto vs Chicago when it comes to development around transit corridors. Toronto: 50, 66 & 69 story towers. 1,507 residences. 256 parking spaces for cars; 1,579 spaces for bicycles.

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Thomas Bamonte @thomasbamonte.bsky.social · 12/09/2026

Once over the bridge via the sidewalk there is no ramp back on the street, a place where many cyclists would be uncomfortable being in any event.

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Thomas Bamonte @thomasbamonte.bsky.social · 12/09/2026

The sidewalk is a poor bike lane alternative—narrow, twisty, with no dedicated ramps on/off the street. And someone in their engineering wisdom planted a pole in the middle of this poor excuse of a bike lane alternative.

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Thomas Bamonte @thomasbamonte.bsky.social · 12/09/2026

There are no bike lanes—not even painted lanes—on this stretch of North Avenue. Making the street a four-lane stroad—the ungainly hybrid of a street and a road—packs in the cars/trucks and leaves little space for bicycles.

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Thomas Bamonte @thomasbamonte.bsky.social · 12/09/2026

Why might the many bicyclists using the Cortland Avenue Bridge and the now carless stretch between Elston and Clybourn to get safely across the Chicago River feel strongly that aldermanic-led plans to restore car traffic ASAP with no apparent provision for safe bicycle passage are misguided?

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Thomas Bamonte @thomasbamonte.bsky.social · 11/09/2026

The Transportation Committee of the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning has unanimously approved the proposed Regional Transportation Plan, recommending that CMAP's Policy Board (the MPO) and Board adopt the RTP at their joint meeting in October. cmap.illinois.gov/regional-pla...

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Thomas Bamonte @thomasbamonte.bsky.social · 11/09/2026

The transportation sector is the largest source of greenhouse gases in the state. Report recommends push for vehicle electrification and "a robust mobility and land use strategy that promotes [more] walking, biking, and the use of public transportation."

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Thomas Bamonte @thomasbamonte.bsky.social · 11/09/2026

The ILEPA has released the final draft of its Comprehensive Climate Action Plan. Website with link to final draft and background materials: epa.illinois.gov/topics/clima...

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Thomas Bamonte @thomasbamonte.bsky.social · 10/09/2026

Adoption of neglected parcels along streets and cultivating little patches of wildness for birds, squirrels, rabbits, bees, and butterflies using plants and seeds harvested from local vacant lots. Plus sunflowers! 🌞🌻

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Thomas Bamonte @thomasbamonte.bsky.social · 10/09/2026

The revised plan for the West Garage replaces the public park with more parking, presumably paid parking that will generate revenue for the owner. There is no indication in the news article that the amount of the tax incentive awarded will be adjusted as a result of these changes.

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Thomas Bamonte @thomasbamonte.bsky.social · 10/09/2026

When the project got $55M in tax incentives from the Chicago City Council, the plan was that the West Garage "will be topped with a large public park accessed both by an accessible outdoor path that slopes up from the street and three vertical access points." chicago.urbanize.city/post/city-co...

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Thomas Bamonte @thomasbamonte.bsky.social · 09/09/2026

If gun manufacturers can be held financially responsible for a portion of the harms caused by people using their product--anyone have an assessment?--can auto manufacturers be held responsible for a portion of the harms caused by their vehicles under a similar law?

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Thomas Bamonte @thomasbamonte.bsky.social · 09/09/2026

Sobering chart on housing unaffordability from this paywalled article. In Illinois the People Over Parking Act—part of the NITA reforms package—is a start but more needs to be done—e.g., pass the @govpritzker.illinois.gov BUILD Act. www.wsj.com/economy/cons...

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Thomas Bamonte @thomasbamonte.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

Union membership is up in the US per new @ilepi.bsky.social study.

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Thomas Bamonte @thomasbamonte.bsky.social · 06/09/2026

In recent months, advocates like @betterstreetschicago.org have effectively organized and prompted @illinoisdot.bsky.social and CDOT to withdraw their “preferred alternative”—which replicated the current expressway barrier and had no dedicated main lanes for transit buses. From CMAP and sponsors:

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Thomas Bamonte @thomasbamonte.bsky.social · 06/09/2026

Let's detour for a quick shoutout to the folks who designed/maintain the nice landscaping along parts of DLSD. But slapping a 45 mph speed limit on a road clearly designed for higher speeds to technically comply with the legal requirement that DLSD be a parkway cannot obscure that this is an x-way.

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Thomas Bamonte @thomasbamonte.bsky.social · 06/09/2026

The South Side between McCormick Place and Jackson Park seems especially burdened. A mass of train tracks already separates park-deprived neighborhoods from skinny Lake Michigan parks. The DLSD expressway literally cements and expands this barrier and cuts potential parkland by half or more.

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Thomas Bamonte @thomasbamonte.bsky.social · 06/09/2026

The #BiketheDrive @activetransportation.org raises the question why is Chicago running an 8 lane DuSable Lake Shore Drive expressway through an incredible lakefront park, creating a giant barrier between miles of neighborhoods and the lake? blockclubchicago.org/2026/09/04/a...

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Thomas Bamonte @thomasbamonte.bsky.social · 06/09/2026

Long line developing at Fullerton for #BikeTheDrive @activetransportation.org registration. Looks like great day for the ride, however.

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Thomas Bamonte @thomasbamonte.bsky.social · 01/09/2026

NITA directors-"represent your respective constituencies but in the context of creating, operating, and maintaining a single, unified transportation system that serves all of NE IL, regardless of where riders live, where riders work, where riders are passing through, or what mode they’re using."

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Thomas Bamonte @thomasbamonte.bsky.social · 28/08/2026

It’s unfortunate that even though the Chat With CTA user reporting app @chicagocta.bsky.social asks the reporter for the bus number, in the new model CTA buses the bus number is not readily readable by seated passengers. Bus numbers seem more accessible in older model buses.

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Thomas Bamonte @thomasbamonte.bsky.social · 25/08/2026

What impact does this have on Metra's $~1.3B project for improved ORD service that CMAP proposes to include in the region's next Regional Transportation Plan? cmap.illinois.gov/wp-content/u...

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Thomas Bamonte @thomasbamonte.bsky.social · 22/08/2026

The NITA Act also imposed requirements such as fare system integration and improved transit system security that will be costly. NITA/RTA has proposed allocating $350M to cover these new expenses and fund needed reserves.

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Thomas Bamonte @thomasbamonte.bsky.social · 22/08/2026

The NITA Act is expected to generate almost $1.3B in additional operating funding: $553M--Sales Tax III; $731M--State Sales Tax on Gas. These additional funds cover the funding gap exacerbated by lower post-COVID ridership, which had been projected at >$1B by 2030. www.rtachicago.org/uploads/file...

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Thomas Bamonte @thomasbamonte.bsky.social · 22/08/2026

The goal of the NITA reforms is to grow transit ridership in the Chicago region beyond what @rtachicago.bsky.social was able to achieve over its 40+ years. Despite the region's population/employment growth, transit ridership fell from ~700M rides/yr. when RTA began in 1983 to ~400M rides/yr. today.

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Thomas Bamonte @thomasbamonte.bsky.social · 22/08/2026

If transit ridership in the Chicago region continues to grow at the current pace--not a given in light of the current trend line--it will take over 13 years for ridership to reach the 2019 level, which was already significantly lower than the ridership highs this century.

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Thomas Bamonte @thomasbamonte.bsky.social · 22/08/2026

This recent RTA/NITA board meeting slide shows slowing transit ridership recovery from the COVID era in the Chicago region: 2021-22: 43.7% ridership growth; 2022-23: 18.1%; 2023-24: 13.4%; 2024-25: 9.0%; 2025-26: 2.8%. www.rtachicago.org/uploads/file... (slide 11)

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Thomas Bamonte @thomasbamonte.bsky.social · 19/08/2026

It appears that North Avenue is not being actively considered for BRT by IDOT, CDOT, CTA, RTA/NITA despite being so overrun by single occupancy vehicles that bus operations are severely compromised on a regular basis. www.transitchicago.com/betterstreet...

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Thomas Bamonte @thomasbamonte.bsky.social · 15/08/2026

Toronto is building even bigger buildings along its transit corridors right and left 👇while Chicago delays and dilutes even moderately-sized TOD for years. More density around transit supports better transit (more fare paying riders), which reduces need for cars/parking. Low density = more cars.

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Thomas Bamonte @thomasbamonte.bsky.social · 13/08/2026

Compare TxDOT with, for example, its Artificial Intelligence Strategic Plan. www.txdot.gov/about/leader...

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Thomas Bamonte @thomasbamonte.bsky.social · 13/08/2026

BGC scores Chicago in the middle globally on the various metrics used.

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Thomas Bamonte @thomasbamonte.bsky.social · 13/08/2026

Chicago scores the lowest of 8 US cities in Boston Consulting Group's Intelligent Cities Index. The Index evaluates cities across five domains of intelligent city maturity: outcomes, strategy, adoption, ways of working, and enablers. (IDOT selected @bcg.com to be the NITA transition consultant BTW.)

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Thomas Bamonte @thomasbamonte.bsky.social · 13/08/2026

Transit Databook @yonahfreemark.com is a great resource. Per capita transit ridership in the Chicago region--a bit over 1 ride a month per person--poses big challenge/opportunity for NITA.

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Thomas Bamonte @thomasbamonte.bsky.social · 10/08/2026

Do the set of speed bumps with a central gutter on this redone alley next the Park 567 along the 606 Trail create a bit of a hazard for bicyclists? Was this intentional to encourage bicyclists to go over the speed bumps and slow down? The diagonal path through the opening can be a bit tricky.

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