I grew up in Chicago in the 1960s and 70s (7000 North).

One of the things I took for granted until I moved away, is the incredibly vast "grid" system of streets in the city. With a few exceptions (Elston, Lincoln) I could simply move over one block and be able to ride down a less crowded street.

I tried to do that in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and sometimes do that here in Colorado Springs. How ever the nature of how the streets are laid out here leads to few or no options in some cases. On the other hand, there is far less traffic here than in Chicago.

I know Chicago streets are even more crowded now than 40 years ago, but sometimes your best option may not be the street with the bike lane.