Traffic Guy

The Traffic Guy Hears...

... that Dodge Avenue is still not in great shape for kids trying to get to Dawes School. New curbs are yet to be installed, and TG thinks, frankly, that this should have been done before school started.

... that Dempster Street between Asbury and Fowler is undergoing repairs. There'll be sewer work, then street resurfacing and finally curb repairs. But for now you can't park along Dempster between Dodge and about Florence unless noted. Pay attention to the sawhorse signs. The trees are all boarded up for protection.

... that we're getting new traffic lights, along with "street and road lighting," at Crawford and Central.

... that the Parks/Forestry & Recreation Department has received a $550,000 grant from the Illinois Transportation Enhancement Program for improving the lakefront bike path. The City's Lakefront Corridor Reconstruction Project calls for reconstructing Evanston's entire lakefront bike pathway and extending it to Lee Street.

... thinking in the context of reducing emissions from vehicles, TG hears that whoever wants to see how much air pollution he or she generates can do it on the net, using these steps provided by the Center for Neighborhood Technology: First go to www.cnt.org. When you get to the site, click on the "Airhead" website (on the left). When you get to "Airhead," click on "Evanston Climate Campaign" in the "Partner Communities" box, then go to "register" in the upper right corner and start your account. Then follow the steps to determine your GHG emission profile.

... that the caissons for the Church Street viaduct replacement may be installed this weekend and next. This work, when it begins, will be from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. both weekends.

... that fawns were blissfully feeding on acorns in the North Shore Sculpture Park along McCormick south of Emerson a few days ago, taken by RoundTable writer Jennie Berkson. They did not appear to be disturbed by the noise of passing cars or the bicyclists who came upon them. But one of them shied at an approaching rabbit.

... that some folks still believe they can smoke in the outdoor cafés (something that will likely end with the season), even though smoking is banned in restaurants in Evanston.
Speaking of smoking, here's a pic of the fire at North Shore towing a couple of weeks ago. Several fire departments had to help out, partly because, fire officials say, at least one hydrant was pretty far from the fire.

... that yesterday, Sept. 19, was International Talk Like a Pirate Day. And just a week before, Sept. 13 was International Chocolate Day.

... that folks who watch what's in their bird feeders through Project FeederWatch have been sending info in to the Cornell University Lab of Ornithology for 20 years now. The Lab reports that participants have "submitted more than 1.1 million checklists to date, reporting on the ebb and flow of birds in their yards, the spread of invasive species, and the impact of diseases such as West Nile virus." More than 13,000 people take part in Project FeederWatch, the Lab folks say, tracking birds at their feeders as often as once per week from November through early April.

From our readers:
To TG: Why do we allow the utilities to spray paint all over our City? We have some nicely paved sidewalks in Evanston with unsightly fluorescent markings all over them. They have even sprayed the black granite on my building in the Evanston Galleria. -- Dan Rodriguez

From TG: TG will try to find this out.

To TG: The new stretch of McCormick Blvd. isn't going to remain just two lanes, is it? What kind of improvement would that be? McCormick used to be the fastest way to sail from north to south Evanston and vice-versa. Let's hope nothing new is introducedthat wouldslow things down.

And what's with the creepy Big Brother cameras atop the new traffic lights at the intersection of McCormick and Green Bay? Did they think they could slip those by on us without our noticing?
-- Kevin Jones

From TG: As far as TG knows (no confirmation from the City as yet), the plan is as originally conceived -- to keep McCormick between Emerson and Green Bay two lanes for the most part, with a center turning lane at Green Bay, Bridge and Emerson. TG believes, but has not had verification from the City, that those "cameras" are sensors so that lights can be changed when emergency vehicles need to get through an otherwise-red light.

To TG: A reader wrote last week claiming that a previous column was written in the passive voice. However, the passage cited did not use the passive voice at all. Perhaps he is confusing the passive voice (not used) with the use of the present perfect tense ("has added") in the first sentence, and the past perfect tense ("had contested") in the second sentence.

If the sentences quoted had actually been written in the passive voice, this is how they would have been written instead: "The alley north of Colfax and east of Pioneer has been added by the City to its paving schedule for the year. The project had been contested by residents, but their case was lost in court." -- Kenneth Sax

From TG: Yours was not the only response TG received about that letter. Thank you. TG appreciates your comments, and your clarification of the passive voice will be appreciated by many others.

The Traffic Guy thinks ...
... that it's probably more than coincidence that over Labor Day weekend police stepped up their patrols for drunk drivers and that same weekend the National Beer Wholesalers' Association, in conjunction with the Beer Institute (representing major beer brewers in the country), released results of a study "about the economic impact [of the beer industry on economy] on a local, state and national level."

... that Evanston Environmental Association's annual Duck Pluck, the Duck Race and Pluck, will take place at 4 o'clock on Sept. 30 at Dawes Park lagoon. Even if you can't go, sponsor a duck or a few. They sell quack-packs of three for $25.

... there's a curious website called cityofevanston.com. When you visit it, you find "Used to be a good place to live" and a place to register via e-mail and give a comment. Whose website is it?

... that if NASA can document global warming - such as the summer melting of Arctic ice and winter retreat of sea ice - from satellites way above the earth, why can't the folks in the White House see it?

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