Quote:
Originally Posted by LMich
So, they ended up answering my email this morning, and then called me back later in the day. One of the officer's superior told me that he'd talked to the officer, which is all I wanted, anyway. He also told me that it's legal to ride on the sidewalk unless otherwise posted, which is funny because downtown is one of the only areas where you have signage explicitly telling you that bikes and skateboards aren't allowed on the sidewalk. He was very nice, but then dropped on me that the officer was also a bike cop, which kind of blew my mind, because he has to know how confusing the traffic situation with all of the road construction and closed sidewalks in the area. Anyway, he went on with the usual "well, he's pretty new" blah, blah, blah, but wasn't respectful enough to keep the excuses to a minimum. Anyway, I'm satisfied with the conclusion. Like bad service anywhere else, unless they know they are doing wrong, they'll keep doing wrong, so hopefully, this will keep this from happening in the future.
Man, you wouldn't know how pissed I was. Had that been some stranger, that may have ended in some kind altercation, and I've never been in a fight in my life.
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Lot's of ambiguity in Chicago.
1. It's illegal to ride a bicycle on a Chicago sidewalk
2. Bicyclists must yield to pedestrians when riding on sidewalks
3. When signage is present, it's illegal for bicyclists to ride on a sidewalk
4. On Sheridan Road, it's especially illegal to ride a bicycle on the sidewalk because of slow moving old people.
In other words, the ordinance goes to great lengths to mention where it's definitely not allowed, but gives the flexibility for an officer to stop you if they really feel like it. Since a ridiculous number of people here ride on the sidewalks it doesn't sound like they're all that concerned. Though it's a stupid thing to do. You could hit and injure someone.
The city requires skateboarders to ride on sidewalks. Skateboarding is prohibited in business districts where there are sidewalk obstructions, storefront doors, etc that could create collisions.
Though technically prohibited, skaters generally aren't hassled in business districts with wide sidewalks. Early mornings, or late evenings, the ordinance isn't enforced since pedestrian congestion is low.
Longboarders tend to be treated differently. I use a longboard to get to work on Michigan Ave and ride in both the streets and sidewalks. So do other people. I think the city treats these skaters differently since they tend to be commuters, not "punks doing tricks and making noise outside building lobbies and plazas" Then again, Chicagoans don't seem to be all that concerned with skaters taking over plazas. The drummer kids, saxophone guys playing notes (not songs, just notes), and loud sirens tend to make more of a ruckus.
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) No wonder the country's a mess! 
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