Pritzker: Gia Biagi signals a “new era” at IDOT
Thursday, Dec 12, 2024 - Posted by Isabel Miller
* I asked Governor Pritzker yesterday at an unrelated news conference whether Gia Biagi’s appointment as transportation secretary signals a shift toward a more pedestrian- and bike-friendly IDOT…
It certainly signals that we’re in a new era at IDOT. As you know, one of my goals is to make sure that we are focused on all the projects that are lined up that need to get done. And we’ve had some challenges during COVID, as you know, just broadly in the labor market it was hard to find people to do the jobs are necessary, including especially engineers. And so one of the things that I think that Gia will be very good at is focusing on speeding up that process and making sure that we’re delivering on all the promises that have been made by the Rebuild Illinois program.
We’ve done an awful lot, I want to be clear. I could cite all of the miles, lane miles that have been rebuilt and bridges, which I always love to do in the airports and our water ports. But we want to make sure that those projects get done in a timely fashion. And she’s going to do a great job.
* Background on Biagi from the Sun-Times…
Biagi left [Chicago’s] Transportation Department in August 2023, early in Mayor Brandon Johnson‘s administration. She had taken heat for Lightfoot’s decision to reduce the ticketing threshold for Chicago speed cameras.
But she also took credit for adding 100 miles of bike lanes and implementing pedestrian safety projects at more than 1,000 high-crash intersections. Biagi also expanded the city’s Divvy bike-share program into every neighborhood and developed a “mobility and economic hardship index” to prioritize infrastructure investments.
After leaving CDOT, she returned to the Chicago architecture firm Studio Gang, where she took a leadership post.
* Daily Herald…
In the metro area, Biagi will inherit some major infrastructure projects, including the Kennedy Expressway widening and rebuilding I-80 in Will County.
“Investments in our critical infrastructure connect our residents to the places they need to go, create jobs, and improve the quality of life in communities in every corner of our state,” Biagi said.
* Yesterday, the governor was asked if he’s satisfied with the pace of construction on the Kennedy Expressway…
Never, I mean, really, anybody that sat on the Kennedy, right? I mean you’re constantly feeling it. I mean, it’s a years long problem that’s gone on. There is a schedule that they’re on now, I don’t want to make promises about because we’ve all heard promises and they haven’t been delivered on in the past, with regard to the Kennedy.
But I will say I’ve asked an awful lot of questions about it, and so I would expect that the work will continue at a rapid pace.
* Some social media react…
- Give Us Barabbas - Thursday, Dec 12, 24 @ 9:47 am:
How about the Cairo port project?
- Three Dimensional Checkers - Thursday, Dec 12, 24 @ 9:54 am:
She took heat for Lightfoot’s decision to reduce the ticketing threshold for Chicago’s speed cameras. Subsequently, the current Mayor balances the budget by adding speed cameras.
The best way to reduce traffic on the Kennedy is to make other forms of transportation appealing. I hope Biagi applies that simple truth in her new position.
- Donnie Elgin - Thursday, Dec 12, 24 @ 10:16 am:
=Gia Biagi will be leaps and bounds ahead of any other recent IDOT secretary on bike/ped issues.=
Tell that to the trades and all of Illinois outside of the Metro Chicago Area. Roads are a rare bipartisan issue; while we all hate construction improving roads is a tangible benefit of our taxes and a winner with voters.
- Amalia - Thursday, Dec 12, 24 @ 10:17 am:
start realizing that people need cars, especially for healthcare transportation including for the elderly. figure out how to make traffic move. not tell people that they have to get on a bike or public transportation. those are worthy enterprises but for some of us not a constant alternative. see cars…and trucks…as moving commerce.
- Rich Miller - Thursday, Dec 12, 24 @ 10:24 am:
===start realizing that people need cars===
I mean, aside from a handful of radicals, pretty much everyone understands that.
Try realizing that people walk and ride bikes is what almost all of those folks are saying.
- Excitable Boy - Thursday, Dec 12, 24 @ 10:35 am:
- figure out how to make traffic move. -
The absolute best way to do that is to reduce the number of cars on the road. No one is saying you have to take public transportation or ride a bike, but making those options safer and more convenient will lead to less congestion.
- Huh? - Thursday, Dec 12, 24 @ 10:36 am:
“Gia Biagi will be leaps and bounds ahead of the most recent IDOT secretary on any issue.”
Fixed it for ya.
Omar Osman has been an ineffectual secretary of Transportation. He has been a destructive influence on the department. He has gone out of his way to snub the local highway agencies.
- Three Dimensional Checkers - Thursday, Dec 12, 24 @ 10:40 am:
The way to make traffic move is to reduce the number of vehicles. The Chicagoland area is full of bottlenecks, and adding more road capacity does not solve anything because everyone is trying to get to the same place. It’s logistics not ideology.
- The Opinions Bureau - Thursday, Dec 12, 24 @ 10:56 am:
People should have choices to select the mode of travel that works best for a given trip. Cars are a great tool but aren’t necessarily suited to every trip. A shovel and a spoon are basically the same thing but you wouldn’t use a shovel to eat a bowl of soup any more than you’d use a spoon to plant a tree.
- The Opinions Bureau - Thursday, Dec 12, 24 @ 10:56 am:
People should have choices to select the mode of travel that works best for a given trip. Cars are a great tool but aren’t necessarily suited to every trip. A shovel and a spoon are basically the same thing but you wouldn’t use a shovel to eat a bowl of soup any more than you’d use a spoon to plant a tree.
- Pot calling kettle - Thursday, Dec 12, 24 @ 10:57 am:
==not tell people that they have to get on a bike or public transportation==
If these options are available in a meaningful way (safe, easy to access, connect places people want to go, and, for public transit, frequent), more people will opt in and traffic on the highway will decrease. This works in the rest of the world; we should be able to make it work here.
All that said, some people will need a nudge, like congestion tolling for the loop which has excellent public transit connectivity.
- Huh? - Thursday, Dec 12, 24 @ 10:58 am:
“… shift toward a more pedestrian- and bike-friendly IDOT…”
IDOT has had a bike policy since the 1990’s. Every project is required to evaluate the potential for bicycle accommodations. Pedestrian accommodations are typically the responsibility of the local agencies.
- Dupage - Thursday, Dec 12, 24 @ 10:59 am:
Maybe she could get the Illiana expressway back on track.
- SWSider - Thursday, Dec 12, 24 @ 11:03 am:
==start realizing that people need cars,==
Ah, yes. American infrastructure is famous for its emphasis on high speed rail and tandem bikes.
- Michael McLean - Thursday, Dec 12, 24 @ 11:06 am:
Great pick! Active transportation advocates are not trying to take away your cars folks. We are just trying to stop making them the default choice to get from A to B. Its more affordable to walk, bike, and use transit. Better for the climate too.
Commissioner Biagi understands this, and I am thrilled to see her taking the reigns over an agency that builds roads which account for 45% of all traffic fatalities in Chicago (and that does not include interstates!)
- P. - Thursday, Dec 12, 24 @ 11:06 am:
Donnie what does it matter if the jobs are coming from building roads or bike paths and trails. Enhancements to roadways for bikes and peds only add to project costs, which means more money for the construction companies that do that. Why do the basic when you can sell the deluxe package. Think big!
- P. - Thursday, Dec 12, 24 @ 11:08 am:
Sorry. I can’t believe I violated the punctuation code of conduct after all these years.
- Payback - Thursday, Dec 12, 24 @ 11:10 am:
“I’m confident that she will improve the sustainability…” Can Alderman Martin explain exactly what “sustainability” means in the context of roads? Sounds like Mayor Johnson throwing out buzzwords like “collaborative” every two paragraphs.
If being trendy means putting bike lanes on LSD, I’m not impressed. That was the stupidest idea I’ve heard in the last ten years at least.
- Joe Biden Playing Golf - Thursday, Dec 12, 24 @ 11:13 am:
Is there anyone leading a department in Illinois that isn’t from Chicago?
- Demoralized - Thursday, Dec 12, 24 @ 11:27 am:
==not tell people that they have to get on a bike or public transportation.==
Who is demanding that because nowhere have I seen that. Some people seem to think you can’t do two things at once - maintain and expand infrastructure for cars AND expand pedestrian and bike path opportunities. Some of you act like it’s an either or proposition and it’s not.
- Rich Miller - Thursday, Dec 12, 24 @ 11:27 am:
===that isn’t from Chicago? ===
Yes.
- Six Degrees of Separation - Thursday, Dec 12, 24 @ 11:28 am:
Illinois is one of the few states that have a Complete Streets policy as state law, Public Act 095-0665. I’d put Illinois more at the forefront of bicycle and pedestrian accommodations than many other states. There are always more improvements that could be made, but we also see a lot of bike paths built in the burbs that get scant usage.
- Demoralized - Thursday, Dec 12, 24 @ 11:29 am:
==Is there anyone leading a department in Illinois that isn’t from Chicago?==
Yes but what does it matter if they are doing their job?
- Thinking - Thursday, Dec 12, 24 @ 11:37 am:
Osman allowed/encouraged systemic abuse of revolving door provisions while at IDOT. Allowed employees to “recuse” themselves from engineering firms they had jobs lined up after retirement. Wonder which firm he will be landing at/that he recused himself from. /s/ Good riddance.
https://eec.illinois.gov/content/dam/soi/en/web/eec/eig-summary-reports/05-01-2023-osman-20-02136-redacted-released-summary-report.pdf
- Amalia - Thursday, Dec 12, 24 @ 11:48 am:
spend time on social media with many of the advocates for bicycles and public transportation. many of them are absolutely not understanding of the need for a car. get in a discussion about closing down streets near north in Chicago to cars and remind them that a nearby hospital might be affected. cars are crucial for medical and elderly transport. we should certainly have the options for bicycles and trains, especially trains, and faster ones and I totally realize that. I use trains. getting buy in from those who drive and want to keep driving is crucial for support for legislation.
- fix - Thursday, Dec 12, 24 @ 11:55 am:
Hopefully, she’ll want to stop wasting millions of taxpayer dollars on outsourcing mechanics and fill those jobs.
- 0.0 - Thursday, Dec 12, 24 @ 12:01 pm:
“I’d put Illinois more at the forefront of bicycle and pedestrian accommodations than many other states”.
Outside of Chicago, bicycles are not used very often for transportation purposes. I think they are used more for recreation on bike trails. The focus should really be on rail since most of the traffic/congestion issues are the result of people from the suburbs and the outskirts of the City coming into the City. The bike lanes and bus lanes put in by Rahm Emanuel has been a disaster for traffic congestion in the loop.
- Grandson of Man - Thursday, Dec 12, 24 @ 12:22 pm:
“adding 100 miles of bike lanes and implementing pedestrian safety projects”
Very important that drivers are aware of the new bike lanes, and bikers and pedestrians in general. It takes a tiny amount of time and preparation to prevent catastrophes.
- Rich Miller - Thursday, Dec 12, 24 @ 12:29 pm:
===many of them are absolutely not understanding of the need for a car===
And not a single one of those radicals run anything in government.
C’mon.
- Incandenza - Thursday, Dec 12, 24 @ 12:46 pm:
== And not a single one of those radicals run anything in government. ==
I would contend that the real radicals have had power for decades. Bulldozing thousands of homes to build and widen highways is radical. Building a society where I HAVE to buy a depreciating asset and insure it just to get groceries is radical. Allowing people to use their own two feet without dying (pedestrian deaths are at a 40 year high) is not radical.
- OneMan - Thursday, Dec 12, 24 @ 12:51 pm:
TBH, if she pushes for the state (and the locals) to repaint lines on the road. I’d love to put a bit more effort into keeping lines on the streets visible.
- Pot calling kettle - Thursday, Dec 12, 24 @ 1:04 pm:
Incandenza - agree 100%
- Donnie Elgin - Thursday, Dec 12, 24 @ 1:17 pm:
=I HAVE to buy a depreciating asset and insure it just to get groceries is radical=
If all you really need a car for is groceries - look at Uber Divers to get you to/from the store - or better yet get home delivery - it will be way cheaper than a car and insurance.
- Incandenza - Thursday, Dec 12, 24 @ 1:49 pm:
Donnie, curious why we don’t just build our cities like literally every other nation on earth that allows me to walk with the two legs God gave me to get groceries? Why do I even have to use a car in the first place?
And it’s not just groceries. It’s school dropoff for kids - why can’t my child safely walk to school or ride their bike to school? What about daycare? Work? The gym? Do I have to drive to every single location? Why don’t we just make our cities accessible to children, the disabled, the elderly so they don’t NEED to drive to literally every single location?
- 0.0 - Thursday, Dec 12, 24 @ 2:07 pm:
Incandenza, if you feel so strongly against owning a car, why don’t you move somewhere where you can walk everywhere? When I lived in the City, I didn’t need a car to do those things.
- Incandenza - Thursday, Dec 12, 24 @ 2:10 pm:
I already do live in the city and I do not own a car
However, I extend my thoughts beyond myself when I’m considering policy.
- Six Degrees of Separation - Thursday, Dec 12, 24 @ 2:10 pm:
===Bulldozing thousands of homes to build and widen highways is radical.===
The glory days of “new” or “greenfield” highway construction are long past. Most of the highway construction dollars (in IL at least) are now being spent to maintain or improve existing roads. Even the upcoming $6+ billion Eisenhower Expressway-CTA Blue Line modernization project will not displace a single home, and will mostly just rebuild and modernize what is there today, and will include a lot of pedestrian, bike and transit access improvements.
- 0.0 - Thursday, Dec 12, 24 @ 2:15 pm:
Incandenza, makes sense. I just don’t think that most people want to have to walk to the grocery store (or insert other place of choice). They like their open space.
- Demoralized - Thursday, Dec 12, 24 @ 2:16 pm:
==Do I have to drive to every single location?==
==I already do live in the city==
If you got out of the city and went to rural areas throughout Illinois then maybe you’d understand.
- Incandenza - Thursday, Dec 12, 24 @ 2:27 pm:
== If you got out of the city and went to rural areas throughout Illinois then maybe you’d understand. ==
I grew up in a town less than 10K and still walked to school, church and the library as a child. Walking is universal aside from people literally living in fields which is less than 10% of the population.
- Excitable Boy - Thursday, Dec 12, 24 @ 2:28 pm:
- If you got out of the city and went to rural areas throughout Illinois then maybe you’d understand. -
What does that have to do with anything? The argument is to make alternate forms of transportation safer and more convenient, not to ban cars.
- Annonin' - Thursday, Dec 12, 24 @ 2:54 pm:
Great job Omar. Gia seems to have good connections. Good luck
- Mason County - Thursday, Dec 12, 24 @ 3:05 pm:
One way to get travel to move is to not have Orange Cones for miles and miles before construction. To add to that, actually work on the road that is supposed to be worked on. Too often a small strip or road is under construction, there are Orange Cones going on forever and very few people are working. Even minor projects can stretch out for months.
- Senator Clay Davis - Thursday, Dec 12, 24 @ 3:25 pm:
::The bike lanes and bus lanes put in by Rahm Emanuel has been a disaster for traffic congestion in the loop.::
Bikes and busses = fewer cars. Fewer cars = less traffic.
- Incandenza - Thursday, Dec 12, 24 @ 3:27 pm:
== I just don’t think that most people want to have to walk to the grocery store (or insert other place of choice). They like their open space. ==
If this was true, why are all the most in-demand places to live the densest cities in the country, NYC, San Francisco, Boston, Seattle?
It seems as though there is more demand for dense places to live, and less demand for the open country (look at growth patterns in truly rural areas).
- 0.0 - Thursday, Dec 12, 24 @ 3:36 pm:
“The bike lanes and bus lanes put in by Rahm Emanuel has been a disaster for traffic congestion in the loop.
Bikes and busses = fewer cars. Fewer cars = less traffic.”
The additional bike and bus lanes generally have not led to more people taking the bus or riding their bikes. This isn’t like the Field of Dreams where the mantra was “If you build it they will come”. I work downtown in the loop everyday and from my experience, there are very few bike riders in comparison to the backed up traffic that occurs on those streets with bike and bus lanes in the loop.
- Senator Clay Davis - Thursday, Dec 12, 24 @ 4:33 pm:
::bike and bus lanes generally have not led to more people taking the bus or riding their bikes. This isn’t like the Field of Dreams…from my experience::
I don’t have it handy, but Im pretty sure the city’s data (and independent data) shows your personal experience doesn’t reflect reality.
- Demoralized - Thursday, Dec 12, 24 @ 4:54 pm:
==The argument is ==
That is NOT the argument this person is making.
==I grew up in a town less than 10K and still walked to school, church and the library as a child==
Not sure what that has to do with anything but so did I. You’re acting like cars are evil. If you want to walk, then walk. Nobody is stopping you. But the argument you are attempting to make is just silly.
- Neil Marklund - Thursday, Dec 12, 24 @ 6:19 pm:
Glad to see this pick from the governor! I admire Gia’s views on transportation as she has the experience of a transit rider, driver, pedestrian, and driver. I hope she can give the city of Chicago more control over IDOT arterial roads in the city as they are the most dangerous in terms of the number of crashes due to their wide designs that encourage speeding. I also hope she can take a second look at Redefine the Drive and design the corridor with more priority for public transit and reducing the footprint and pollution from the road that makes it a barrier for park users to access the lakefront.
- Excitable Boy - Thursday, Dec 12, 24 @ 6:47 pm:
- or riding their bikes. -
Can’t really speak to the buses but at least in the summertime I’d say you’re dead wrong about bikes. Additionally I also don’t have the data, but it appears much safer than before.
And for the record I despise Rahm Emanuel more than almost any living Democrat.
- Rich Miller - Thursday, Dec 12, 24 @ 10:33 pm:
===You’re acting like cars are evil===
Cars aren’t evil. Drivers who won’t share the road and fight tooth and nail against changes that require they share a PUBLIC ROADWAY with pedestrians crossing streets and bicyclists constantly in fear of their lives are the real problem.
- Excitable Boy - Thursday, Dec 12, 24 @ 11:06 pm:
- Not sure what that has to do with anything but so did I. -
You’re the one who made the accusation.
- That is NOT the argument this person is making. -
Reading comprehension might not be your strong suit.
- sal-says - Friday, Dec 13, 24 @ 9:17 am:
Hopefully a good sign.
IDOT originally proposed a Complete Streets design for a project in my area. It accommodated vehicles as well as pedestrians & bikes. IDOT dropped that design on a whim. Now proposing a more dangerous roadway & opening up the state to serious legal liability by doing so.