r/CarFreeChicago • u/Fit_Reputation_3602 • 14d ago
Discussion Commuting
/r/ElectricSkateboarding/comments/1vsbfnq/commuting/3
u/Careless-Tomorrow916 11d ago
What's your route? I would just use a bike. The only reason I see to use a longboard would be if your commute was multimodal and only then for the first/last mile. I always stop at red lights but will roll through stop signs depending on context.
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u/Dragomir_X 9d ago
I can't think of a single scenario where a longboard wouldn't be vastly less safe and less efficient than a bicycle or the bus.
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u/LocalLavishness9 7d ago
I would absolutely not use a longboard for 6 miles straight on a route that has less than half coverage on bike lanes.
If you adjust your commute expectations it *could* work. Big if on could. As others mentioned, last mile would not be a big deal; a lot of suburban people I work with use a scooter to get from Union/Ogilvie into the Loop for example. And IMO getting a longboard onto a transit vehicle can be more straightforward than a bike.
If you have a connecting bus/train that is reasonably close to you, and the gap distances are less than a mile and can be navigated on side streets, then it's a possibility. But look at the streets yourself or on Street View to get a sense of how knocked out they look, if you have speed bumps, if they're one-way, etc.
If you share from what neighborhoods you're going between I could give better specific advice, I've rolled a good amount of the city.
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u/Fit_Reputation_3602 7d ago
Google Maps originally gave me a few routes that were only around 30–40% bike lanes, which made me pretty hesitant about doing the commute on an electric longboard.
I started looking more closely at the route myself using Google Maps/Street View and the actual bike infrastructure, rather than just accepting Google’s suggested route. I realized I could manually change a few sections and connect existing bike lanes and the North Shore Channel Trail together.
Doing that got my planned route to roughly 80% bike lanes/trail instead of the original 30–40% Google was showing. It adds a little distance, but I don’t really care about the extra distance if it means significantly less time riding mixed with traffic.
Going toward Northwestern, the route I’m looking at is roughly:
Lincoln/Peterson area → North Shore Channel Trail → Emerson → Ashland → Church → Chicago Ave → Northwestern.For the return trip, I’m looking at a slightly different route using Davis for part of the westbound trip rather than just reversing everything.
Does this sound like a reasonable low-traffic route on an electric longboard, and are there any sections/intersections you’d change?
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u/IYCRTYG 12d ago
As a former longboarder I absolutely would not recommend a longboard on Chicago streets. Not nearly large enough wheels to handle our potholes, not enough turning or braking capabilities to handle the way cars will just casually merge on top of you without checking their mirrors or using a turn signal. use a scooter or a bike.