Currently, there are 18.5 miles of barrier protected bike lanes in the City of Chicago. Barrier protected bike lanes are located next to the curb and use physical barriers, such as parked cars and bollards, to separate bicyclists from motorists and help people of all ages feel more comfortable on the street.

 

These lanes are identified on the Chicago Bike Map.

 

Below are examples of barrier protected bike lanes:

Chicago’s First Barrier Protected Bike Lane on Kinzie Street
The 1/2 mile long Kinzie barrier protected bike lane was installed in June 2011 and extends from Milwaukee Avenue to Wells Street, two of Chicago’s most popular bike routes. Identified as a Crosstown Route in Chicago’s Streets for Cycling Plan 2020, Kinzie is used by more than a thousand cyclists a day. Since Kinzie was installed, bike ridership increased 55% and bicyclists can now account for over 50% of eastbound traffic in the morning peak hour.

Watch a video on the Kinzie protected bike lane

 

 

Dearborn Street Two-Way Barrier Protected Bike Lane
The two-way barrier-protected bike lane on Dearborn was installed in December 2012 and extends from Polk St. to Kinzie St. As a Spoke Route Dearborn provides a direct route in and out of the Loop.

 

 

Milwaukee Avenue Barrier Protected Bike Lane
Identified as a Spoke Route in Chicago’s Streets for Cycling Plan 2020, the Milwaukee Avenue barrier protected bike lane was installed in June 2013 and extends from Desplaines Street to Elston Avenue. Milwaukee is used by more than a thousand cyclists a day and provides a direct route in and out of the Loop.

For more information about types of bike lanes and terminology, please refer to our Streets for Cycling Plan 2020.