Articles filed under Pyke, Marni

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  NATO restrictions messing up Bensenville kids' travel plans May 21, 2012 12:00 AM
  Even kids can't catch a break with the NATO-induced security beatdown. Concord Lutheran School students planned the trip of a lifetime to the nation's capital, only to run into snags because they're traveling today. Here's how they're coping. Plus traffic alerts and a roundabout wonk-o-rama.
  

   
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  Best ways to get around during NATO this weekendMay 14, 2012 12:00 AM
  Expect the unexpected. And traffic. That's what experts advise as Chicago hosts leaders of the free world during the NATO Summit. If you do go into Chicago - and Crosstown Classic ticket holders, we mean you - here are some tips on coping as 50 world leaders — complete with motorcades, minions and private jets — descend on the city.
  

   
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  Illinois looks to convert freeways to tollways May 7, 2012 12:00 AM
  Hey ... didn't this road used to be free? The Elgin O'Hare Expressway will convert to a tollway and the same could happen to Route 53 through the Northwest suburbs. Does this mean a Cook County vs. Lake County smackdown? “No other county uses sales taxes or motor fuel taxes for state or regional roads,” Buffalo Grove Mayor Jeff Braiman said. “Why should Lake County be any different?”
  

   
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  Won’t someone promise gas price relief?Apr 30, 2012 12:00 AM
  What will fuel prices be this summer? Experts say there's reason for optimisim, but that could easily be undone by geopolitical events. Plus gas-saving tips, reader poetry, Mitt Romney's dog Seamus, traffic hotspots, bus rapid transit and so much more, in Marni Pyke's InTransit column.
  

   
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  Road will finally lead into O'Hare, but then what?Apr 23, 2012 12:00 AM
  Now's your chance to comment on the latest plans for extending the Elgin O'Hare expressway and building a western bypass. The design includes a minimalist entrance into the airport plus some local interchanges that will have a huge impact on the communities they're located in.
  

   
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  Vacation proves a nightmare for RTA directorApr 16, 2012 12:00 AM
  I have a fabulous idea for a movie. It’s an adventure tale packed with drama and even moments of humor called “Shipwrecked in Borneo!” It’s about a couple who plan a dream vacation only to get a rude awakening when the cruise ship’s engines blow up. What follows is a fire, no electric power, seedy hotels with lizards en suite and pirates. OK, no pirate sightings. But there could have been. And, it’s all true.
  

   
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  Experts talk about the new dangers of driving and electronic distraction Apr 9, 2012 12:00 AM
  Hey, even distracted driving scholars get caught goofing off behind the wheel. So is safe driving all on us? Or can smarter cars help do the job? A panel of NTSB experts gives evidence and some surprising statistics. Plus, readers sound off about state car perks.
  

   
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  Palatine senator pushes tough rules for toll hikesApr 2, 2012 12:00 AM
  Credit state Sen. Matt Murphy for the Don Quixote bill of the year. The Palatine Republican's bill requiring eight directors on the 11-member Illinois tollway board to approve future rate hikes sailed through the Senate. And Murphy expects easy passage in the House.
  

   
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  Audit shows misuse of state-owned carsMar 26, 2012 12:00 AM
  At a time when Illinois is struggling financially, a report shows widespread misuse and abuse of state-owned cars. Some, in fact, are used mainly for workers commuting to and from the office. In 2010, 65 state agencies had 16,600 vehicles and spent $121 million on them. Now the Senate is expected to take up a bill already passed by the House tightening oversight on state-owned vehicle use.
  

   
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  Readers not ready to smile for speed camerasMar 19, 2012 12:00 AM
  I got such a strong response to the prospect of the Illinois General Assembly allowing speed cameras in the suburbs, this column is devoted to your thoughts. Leslie Koehler from Mundelein thinks "it smacks of a revenue-generating scheme," but Leslie Ryan of Rolling Meadows asks, "What is so wrong about enforcing our existing laws?"
  

   
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  Speed cameras in the 'burbs? Not so fast, some lawmakers sayMar 12, 2012 12:00 AM
  Red-light cameras seem to be everywhere. So are speed cameras next in the suburbs? A bill to make that the case cropped up last week, but local lawmakers aren't sold on the idea.
  

   
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  Where's Superman when transit funding is tied to the track?Mar 5, 2012 12:00 AM
  With the transportation funding debate resuming this week, will Congress once again count out the suburbs? Metra and Pace riders have a lot at stake as the issue heats up again.
  

   
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  Air traffic controllers in Aurora honored for key saveFeb 27, 2012 12:00 AM
  A vicious spring storm swept the Midwest, meaning a busy day at the Federal Aviation Administration's Chicago Center facility in Aurora when a pilot ran into trouble. His fuel was low, his plane was icing but thanks to veteran air traffic controllers Steve McGreevy and Guy Lieser, an endangered pilot landed safely. Their teamwork resulted in one of the highest honors in their profession .
  

   
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  Consensus near on Route 53 extension? Feb 20, 2012 12:00 AM
  The Illinois Tollway is convening elected officials, environmentalists, planners, labor unions and road builders to decide if and how Route 53 should be extended north to Route 120. The alternatives include a no-frills non-tolled Route 53 extension, a tolled parkway, four-lane concept and a mega six-lane tollway.
  

   
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  High-tech car gadgets distracting, experts say Feb 13, 2012 12:00 AM
  Is there an app to cure distracted driving? And can I access it from my dashboard computer? Even as laws are floated to curb distracted driving, new technology is offering motorists even more ways to do it. “Until cars can drive themselves, drivers should engage primarily in the task of driving the vehicle,” says Dave Teater of the National Safety Council.
  

   
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  Chicago Auto Show roars into townFeb 6, 2012 12:00 AM
  It's been a tough few years at the auto show. Despite all the hoopla, it's a little hard to celebrate the industry in the midst of catastrophic financial figures or embarrassing recalls. But this year's event, which opens Friday at McCormick Place, promises to be anything but deflating.
  

   
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  Coming at you this week — Metra fare hikeJan 30, 2012 12:00 AM
  If you switched to Metra to elude higher tolls that went into effect Jan. 1, you're out of luck as of Wednesday. Metra fares will spike this week by an average of 30 percent for 10-ride tickets and 29 percent for monthly passes. The increase is intended to plug a budget hole of about $53 million. “It hurts,” BNSF passenger Jay Nicholson said Friday at the Downers Grove station. “I'm not getting raises anymore, so it all adds up.”
  

   
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  New helmet, cellphone laws may be afoot in 2012 Jan 23, 2012 12:00 AM
  What new transportation laws could be enacted this year? Try a cellphone ban and motorcycle helmets for starters. That's what officials were talking about at Secretary of State Jesse White's Advisory Committee on Traffic Safety. National Safety Council VP John Ulczycki thinks 2012 should be the year motorcyclists in Illinois are required to wear helmets. “Illinois is only one out of three states without helmet laws,” Ulczycki said.
  

   
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  Suburbanites swap tales of toll avoidance Jan 16, 2012 12:00 AM
  Here's what you have to say about the tollway's higher rates and what you're doing about it. Plus - the Worst Pothole Contest is coming!
  

   
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  Tollway boycott? Doable but not painlessJan 9, 2012 12:00 AM
  The Illinois State Toll Highway Authority nearly doubled its rates January 1 and that has a lot of folks grumbling. The question is: Can you get from your own personal here to there without using the tollways? In most cases it is possible, although stoplights and surface traffic can slow your commute. Even the day of the week and whether your coming or going can impact travel times.