May 1, 2026 Merry month of May: What’s happening in the suburbs for National Bike Month May is National Bike Month, as established by the League of American Bicyclists in 1956, and plenty of suburban events are organized for it. Here are highlights, then a list.
April 15, 2026 Poplar Creek Trail: Would they repave only half of it? Lest you think trails in rough condition should be entirely repaved at once, the Cook County forest district is identifying only the worst trail segments to target first. The northern half of the Poplar Creek Trail could be an example.
April 7, 2026 Post No. 100: How to ride a century, 100 miles in a day, in the suburbs We’ve reached 100 posts on this website! What better topic for the 100th post than riding 100 miles in one day? Here’s where and how you can do it in the suburbs.
April 2, 2026 The Cal-Sag Trail: How sweet it is, how much sweeter it could become On the long list of bike trails in Cook County’s forest preserves, the Cal-Sag Trail in southern suburbs is a relative baby. But it’s been created with love and care so far.
March 25, 2026 Latest Cook County forest trail plans: DPRT, Midlothian, Palos, Major Taylor … and Busse? The Forest Preserves of Cook County released its updated 5-year Capital Improvement Plan, and a few sections involve trail improvements.
March 23, 2026 Fits and starts on Tinley Creek trails: New asphalt, but street crossings, Midlothian Meadows The Tinley Creek Trail system has been on Cook County’s resurfacing list in recent years, and that work has paid off. But all the big intersections can make it a tough ride.
March 15, 2026 Cook County trail reconnaissance: Thorn Creek The Cook County forest preserve district was “focusing on an evaluation of the Thorn Creek Trail system” over the last couple of years. I decided to evaluate it myself.
March 5, 2026 The repaved Old Plank Road Trail: Oh yeah, it’s good Fans of the Old Plank Road Trail were rejoicing at even the prospect of repaving the bumpy west end in 2025. Now that it’s done, the trail sure is beautiful.
March 4, 2026 Grand tour of the northwest preserves: How to ride these four Cook County trails in one trip The northwest suburbs of Cook County have four great forest preserve trails not too far from each other. Imagine riding them all in one day.
March 2, 2026 A classic child of the ’70s: The North Branch Trail As the Cook County forest district celebrated its new Wellness Center at Caldwell Woods, it pointed out a big change to the classic adjacent bike trail — bringing back memories.
February 18, 2026 Lake Zurich and its new Main Street downtown: Bike-friendly … someday? The reconstruction of Main Street through central Lake Zurich is complete, and it’s spectacular, especially through the Promenade. But one thing it isn’t right now: bike-friendly.
February 10, 2026 Great winter getaway ride: Gulf Blvd. and the bridges around Clearwater, Florida While scouting routes during my visits to the Clearwater area, I quickly discovered Gulf Blvd. on the map. It’s on a thin strip of land, really a few islands, providing Gulf and Tampa Bay views.
February 3, 2026 Evanston tops 9 suburbs now on League’s ‘Bicycle Friendly Community’ list Nine suburbs of Chicago are now on The League of American Bicyclists’ “Bicycle Friendly Community” list after the latest round of applications. One is back above the others.
February 3, 2026 Bike lanes or paths town by town: A compilation of suburbs’ infrastructure As Schaumburg residents differ on the village’s move from bike lanes to off-road paths in some places, I examine what other suburbs are doing for bike routes — paths or lanes or nothing?
January 31, 2026 What the secretary of state wants to do about e-bike and e-moto safety and law The secretary of state, lawmakers and advocates launched a campaign to regulate e-motos separately from e-bikes, and to educate Illinoisans on the distinction.
January 8, 2026 Suburban Chicago Bicycling joins letter urging Congress to keep funding bike-ped infrastructure Suburban Chicago Bicycling has signed onto a letter to congressional leaders urging them to preserve programs for bicycling and pedestrian facilities such as bike lanes and off-road paths.
December 27, 2025 Top suburban Chicago bicycling news in 2025: E-bikes, roundabouts, bridges and more In the first year of this website, I found even more suburban Chicago bicycling news than I imagined I would. E-bike laws, new bridges and roundabouts were among the most read topics.
December 22, 2025 How suburban Chicago e-bike laws evolved in 2025: Strict, then loose, then mixed E-bike use in the suburbs continued growing in 2025, and so did that of “e-motos.” That generated a rollercoaster of e-bike laws, from strict to loose, then to mixed.
December 19, 2025 Riding a legend: The mysterious, beautiful Cuba Road in Lake County As the suburbs slowly rose in southwest Lake County, Cuba Road was always there. While in recent decades it has been the focus of haunted legends, it’s become a haven for bicyclists, too.
December 13, 2025 2025 road, bike trail construction: Old Plank Road, McClory trails done! Suburban road construction and even trail work are happening in 2025. Here’s an ongoing list of temporary obstacles on bicyclists’ routes, plus some notes on future projects.
