Released June 3, 2010

Contact:
Margo O’Hara, Active Transportation Alliance
312.427.3325 x224
margo@activetrans.org

Mark Heiden, Pritzker Military Library
312.587.0234
mheiden@pritzkermilitarylibrary.net

Updated Chicagoland Bike Map features expanded coverage, more bikeways and connections

Chicagoland bicyclists now have the most up-to-date riding and route information thanks to the release of the 5th Edition Chicagoland Bike Map, produced by the Active Transportation Alliance and supported by Tawani Foundation.

Get ready for more connections, trails and coverage than any Northeast Illinois regional bike map. The new edition features

• Expanded coverage to the north up to Lake Geneva and south all the way to the Midewin Prairie in Grundy County
• More trail and on-street biking networks for you to explore
• Icons for all the bike shops in the region
• Historic military sites

The Chicagoland Bike Map is free with an Active Trans membership. Join or renew today at www.activetrans.org/membership. Maps are also available online at www.activetrans.org/shop for $10 each.

“The map is a perfect resource to explore new routes to work or find hidden trails on the weekends,” said Active Transportation Alliance Senior Transportation Planner Carolyn Helmke. “Nowhere else does this kind of comprehensive bike map of our region exist.”

The map is the result of more than a hundred volunteers investigating and documenting new trails, existing road conditions, and the new territory that the map covers. A series of public meetings that gathered input from residents and bicyclists also informed the update.

The Active Transportation Alliance Chicagoland Bike Map project is provided in part through a grant from Tawani Foundation, which worked in concert with the Pritzker Military Library to develop online resources and research bibliographies for many of the map’s new destinations at http://www.pritzkermilitarylibrary.org/bike.

“The Chicagoland Bike Map is a valuable resource for individuals, groups, and families. With the release of the anxiously awaited 5th Edition and the inclusion of historic military sites, riders can explore important landmarks from our nation’s past, and then continue the journey with reference materials online,” said COL (IL) James N. Pritzker, IL ARNG (Ret.), Founder and President of the Tawani Foundation. “As an avid cyclist and historian, support of the creation of this map was a project that I truly valued being a part of and was made possible through the dedicated staff leadership and volunteers of Active Transportation Alliance.”

ABOUT THE ACTIVE TRANSPORTATION ALLIANCE
The Active Transportation Alliance is a non-profit, member-based advocacy organization that works to make bicycling, walking and public transit so safe, convenient and fun that we will achieve a significant shift from environmentally harmful, sedentary travel to clean, active travel. The organization builds a movement around active transportation, encourages physical activity, increases safety and builds a world-class transportation network. Formerly the Chicagoland Bicycle Federation, the Active Transportation Alliance is North America’s largest transportation advocacy organization, supported by more than 6,000 members, 1,000 volunteers and 35 full-time staff. For more information on the Active Transportation Alliance, visit www.activetrans.org or call 312.427.3325.

ABOUT THE TAWANI FOUNDATION

Tawani Foundation is a registered 501(c)(3) grant-making organization in Chicago, Illinois whose mission is to increase knowledge and understanding of the Citizen Soldier through the support of organizations dedicated to military history and heritage, historical preservation, and conservation. Tawani Foundation awards grants to 501(c)(3) organizations according to specified programs areas and is committed to the four key initiatives of: 1) historical preservation of military heritage, 2) conservation and preservation of historical sites and resources, 3) health and wellness projects, and 4) achievement awards programs for military authors, JROTC and ROTC.

ABOUT THE PRITZKER MILITARY LIBRARY

The Pritzker Military Library is a non-partisan, non-profit research institution located at 610 North Fairbanks Court in the Streeterville neighborhood of Chicago, near the Magnificent Mile. Admission is free and open to the public, Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., and also for scheduled evening events, which include lectures by award-winning authors and interviews with Medal of Honor recipients that are webcast live and recorded for television broadcast.

Winner of the 2009 National Medal for Museum and Library Service, the Pritzker Military Library features a collection of books and films on subjects covering the full spectrum of American military history, along with military-themed posters, photographs, medals, uniforms, and other artifacts from private donors and the collection of the Library’s founder, COL (IL) James N. Pritzker, ARNG (Ret.). To learn more, please visit www.pritzkermilitarylibrary.org.

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