Living Car Free - Schaumburg....bike friendly??

My wife has an interview in Schaumburg so I'm along to take a look at the city.

I was FLOORED when I saw sidepaths as I entered the city and not surprised at all when I saw they are covered in 8" of snow.

I've also spent a day here and have not seen a single street that was not at least 4 lanes. Most are 6 which seems odd for a town of this size.

Then I died a little inside when I read that Schaumburg has a mandatory sidepath law. Since their side paths are nothing more than sidewalks (they are not signalized-RTOR allowed etc) they are certainly not going to be ridden by anyone who has any idea how to bicycle.

Anyone here know anything about this town? How did it get a LAB award when by all appearances seems to be bicycling hell.

I would lean towards your original assessment of Schaumburg. I live close enough to pass through on a regular basis, and have let it be known to the people around me that Schaumburg is the last city in all of the Northwest Suburbs that I would ever live in. You might find great cycling within a quiet residential neighborhood, or on a MUT if any exist within the town, but I can't see managing to live car free if you lived there. I wouldn't dare to ride on Golf/Higgins/Schaumburg Rds, or any of the N-S roads that intersect with it. I'm not sure where you're from, but I don't really find any of the NW Burbs to be particularly bike-friendly in any capacity other than recreational i.e. ride down the one MUT and back.

I would lean towards your original assessment of Schaumburg. I live close enough to pass through on a regular basis, and have let it be known to the people around me that Schaumburg is the last city in all of the Northwest Suburbs that I would ever live in. You might find great cycling within a quiet residential neighborhood, or on a MUT if any exist within the town, but I can't see managing to live car free if you lived there. I wouldn't dare to ride on Golf/Higgins/Schaumburg Rds, or any of the N-S roads that intersect with it. I'm not sure where you're from, but I don't really find any of the NW Burbs to be particularly bike-friendly in any capacity other than recreational i.e. ride down the one MUT and back.
Sounds like the cyclists live in Chicago and have abandoned Schaumburg to the motorists.

I've been here since Sunday afternoon and I have seen one bicycle. The rider looked poor, confused and scared.

The city, despite its ridiculous roads and even worse side paths, has ensured that every business in town has bicycle parking. I have not seen a single bicycle in any of the racks.

I've traveled the entire United States for the most part and this is by far the least bicycle friendly community I've ever been in.

-mandatory side path law
-essentially every street is 5, 6 or 7 lanes. The "residential streets" are all basically 4 lanes.

This is really a town that never wanted an automobile to be slowed down. If your one of these folks who believe that gridlock wastes fuel than Schaumburg is truly a "green" city.

The burbs in general suck when it comes to cycling. It is actually downtown Chicago were I find the best path to cycle around in the city. Lake Shore Path is a very nice stretch to cycle from north to south and along some major routes inside the city you find bike lanes as well. Now you still have to be awfully aware of your surroundings or your the next victim of a careless driver as those are the majority. But I don't think that's a Chicago only problem.

Thomas

I live in Evanston and often ride north along Sheridan Road. Once you get up to Ft. Sheridan, there is a pretty decent variety of routes that can take you all the way into Wisconsin. In the other direction, once you get through Rogers Park, the Lakeshore Path is a good option (depending on the time of day). Riding around Evanston itself is pretty bicycle friendly in my opinion--everything is close and there are bike racks or parking meters all over the place for locking up.

So, if your wife takes a job in Shaumburg, and you want to bicycle, I'd strongly suggest looking for a home along the North Shore--and, in my opinion, Evanston is a great choice.

I live in Evanston and often ride north along Sheridan Road. Once you get up to Ft. Sheridan, there is a pretty decent variety of routes that can take you all the way into Wisconsin. In the other direction, once you get through Rogers Park, the Lakeshore Path is a good option (depending on the time of day). Riding around Evanston itself is pretty bicycle friendly in my opinion--everything is close and there are bike racks or parking meters all over the place for locking up.

So, if your wife takes a job in Shaumburg, and you want to bicycle, I'd strongly suggest looking for a home along the North Shore--and, in my opinion, Evanston is a great choice.

Thanks but Evanston is 30 miles away and that still does not resolve the fact that its damn near impossible to bicycle in Schaumburg itself.

I live car free so living that far away is not helpful. Maybe 3 miles......not 30.

I would not live in shaumburg, you couldn't pay me to live there. does she have other work options?

Saw the post was a little stale but just had to comment.

My boss, while riding, has been hit by cars 3 times. All in Schaumburg.

You kind find bike trails and paths, but often you will need to get there by car.

However, traffic in the NW burbs is notoriously aggressive, and bike commuting within them is not a realsitic option.

City of Chicago proper is much more bike friendly.

I've ridden through Schaumburg several times and don't see it as being much different than any other NW suburban community; they're all pretty much made just for cars. That "Bicycle Friendly Community" award is a joke, and I even let the LAB know what I thought of it.

Still, I wouldn't say bike commuting is not an option here. You just need to figure out the best routes to where you want to go, and then ride them with best practices. Plus, if you do it the same time everyday, the drivers will get used to dealing with you. I never was stopped by the police for not riding on the sidepaths, but I still wonder how often that law is enforced.

In defense of Schaumberg vs. City of Chicago, isn't it always the case that the suburb has the fast 4-6 lane speedways where you equate bike riding with suicide? Much of that has to do with how the city/'burb is laid out. In suburbs, frequently the residential streets are like a funnel to the speedways. The city (particularly the city of Chicago) has lots of the same, but cyclists are able to avoid them because the street layout is grid style. You can probably go from O'Hare to Michigan Avenue on side streets.

I live in Chicago and commute to Schaumburg, it's a 30 mile oneway trip.

Last summer I was able to commute by combining about 20 miles of bike riding with about 10 miles of bus riding. I detailed my commute last year: http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php?t=437188&highlight=schaumburg

Schaumburg is not a haven for bike users, but its not hopeless either.

Michael