Transportation in Urbana and Champaign

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If your car breaks down, check out the Auto Mechanics page.

You may also want to check out Cindy's guide to living (cheaply) in Champaign/Urbana:

Contents

[edit] Bicycles

[edit] Bikeworks

Many people feel strongly that by far the best place to go to have a bike worked on or to buy a bike is Bikeworks. Bruce, the bike mechanic who owns the shop, is very competent, and his prices are much lower than those of his commercial competitors in town, sometimes by better than 50% depending on the job. Also, he refuses to stock or order items which he considers crappy, so you can be assured that whatever you buy from his shop is of good quality. This means that with some items he does not carry cheap models or much variety if any variety at all.

One thing to be aware of is that while Bruce is very knowledgeable, he is also somewhat eccentric. He will refuse to sell you a bike he does not think you need, and if your bike is a "K-Mart" bike, he will refuse to work on it, since it will not be worth his time or effort. Also note that he considers Mongoose and (the new) Schwinns to belong to this category of "crappy K-Mart bikes." He has strong opinions and is stubborn about them. Some experienced riders have disagreed with his opinions, and found him inflexible. On the other hand, some exoperienced riders have been Bruce's customers for decades.

He is a collector of old bikes that are all around the shop but usually refuses to sell them because he doesn't make the time to make sure they are safe to ride. If pressed, he will offer to sell them but it may be at a wildly inflated price, to drive home the point that you should not buy classic bikes from a collector. However, if he knows and likes you, and knows you will use the bike well he may sell you one at a very reasonable price.

In spite of Bruce's eccentricities, you can learn a lot from him about bicycles and their care. Bruce would rather teach a customer to do a minor repair (such as flat-tire repair) than to continually have people coming in needing that minor repair (see note 3 below). If Bruce feels that you are at least a competent mechanic he may let you use his stand and tools to make your own minor repairs and adjustments. However he reacts strongly to people who sound as though they know more than they do.

Bruce deals mainly in Bianchi and KHS bicycles, the most popular of which he sells is the hybrid Bianchi Avenue and KHS Green. He also sells rebuilt three speeds and several older cruiser models. He states that he refuses to sell bicycles unless they are in good to great mechanical condition, although the paint job often leaves something to desire.

Customers routinely bring their bikes from Chicago, a large market 135 miles to the North (with a lot of good mechanics) to Bruce for repairs. Customers from as far away as Arizona who once lived in Champaign-Urbana have sent bent frames of loved bikes to Bruce. They know if it can be straightened or brazed he is the guy who can and will do it. He will go to great lengths to keep a well loved and still serviceable (steel) frame bicycle from ending up in the recycle scrap heap.

CALL FIRST! 217-328-2001
He usually works alone and his hours are somewhat idiosyncratic.
Be prepared to make two trips for a repair. His shop is so full of bikes that he doesn't like to let customers leave a bike for repairs. You have to bring it back a second time. If it can not be fixed while you wait you may want to try another shop in town.

Monday thru Friday
2:00 pm to 6:00 pm

Saturday
12:00 pm to 5:00 pm

Bikeworks is located near the Siebel Center, near the corner of Goodwin and Main, at:

1103 W. Main St., Urbana, IL 61801

217-328-2001

Bikeworks on YouTube

[edit] Champaign Cycle

The Trek dealer in C-U. Their site is at http://www.champaigncycle.com/ . Excellent staff, very knowledgeable and helpful. Fairly good selection of bikes, including lots of road and mountain bikes. They do a lot to support the cycling community, including leading "Pedaling for Pleasure" for novice riders on Tuesday evenings (Mid-April through Labor Day Weekend). They're also selling Dahon folding bikes now, which is a great option for commuting if you want to bring your bike inside and be able to tuck it under a desk.

[edit] Prairie Cycle Club

Local bike club. Organizes a variety of rides around the county. http://www.prairiecycleclub.org/

[edit] The Bike Project Co-op

Co-op for bike repair, bike building, and bike advocacy. Free weekly repair classes, plus members get access to workshop and tool collection, all in downtown Urbana.
Web site at http://thebikeproject.org
The Bike Project Co-op
202 S. Broadway
Urbana, IL 61801
(corner of Elm St. and Broadway)
Enter at south side of building, via "Cherry Lane" alley, next to Lincoln Square. Descend outside staircase to lower level entrance.
The Co-op is located in the old post office building in downtown Urbana, which now houses the local IMC chapter.

[edit] Kohlmann Bike Shop

Located in residential Champaign. Nice guy, but operating a retail shop out of his house. Quite possibly the best bicycle repairman in the area. If you want it done right and you live in the Champaign-Urbana area, dont hesitate, make your way over to Kohlmann's immediately. May not have the best selection, but certainly knows what he is doing.

[edit] Durst Cycle & Fitness

The largest privately owned bicycle company in the area. Two stores, one in Champaign IL, the other in Urbana IL. Started in 1935 by the grandfather of the current company manager. Schwinn fitness equipment caused many bike shops around the country to get into fitness equipment sales and service decades ago. Durst Cycle has expanded that part of the business many fold. Now they carry the bikeshop line of Schwinn bicycles, Giant, Raleigh, and the Electra Townie peddle forward design bicycle which has been a very popular seller for Durst. Many older riders buying bicycles for the first time in decades have found this to be a comfortable, upright posture bicycle to ride. For serious road riders Durst carries Cannondale bicycles and in their Urbana store they have some of the state-of-the-art, high-end Assos brand line of riding clothing. They also sell electric trains, something the original owner started, and skateboards. They seem to like anything with wheels. Their site is http://www.durstcycle.com/

[edit] Safe Biking in Illinois

There's more to cycling than looking both ways and pedaling. This booklet has the legal info and good advice for exactly where in a lane to ride and getting through intersections. Some of this is counterintuitive but it's better to find out the easy way (hint: hugging the curb or riding the sidewalk is more dangerous than being visible). http://www.dot.state.il.us/bikemap/safekids/safebike.pdf

To help find your way around town by bike look for the free Champaign-Urbana Area Bicycle Map (released 7/2008). Produced through a joint effort between ChampaignCountyBikes.org and The League of Illinois Bicyclists. The map provides suggestions for on-street routes that local cyclists ranked by level of comfort for the average adult rider. Destinations (schools, libraries, shopping, etc.) are marked on the map to help find the way. The location of bike shops are also indicated. The reverse of the map has information on local resources for bicyclists, safe riding information and C-U Mass Transit District routes. Instructions for the use of the bicycle racks that can be found on all MTD buses is also there. See an online version of the map and a list of locations where the map is available at ChampaignCountyBikes.org.

[edit] Buses

The Champaign-Urbana Mass Transit District (C-U MTD) at one time awarded "The best little transit systems in the country", though there is a rumor that its quality of service has decreased recently.

  • The University of Illinois subsidizes the C-U MTD through student fees collected at registration. Faculty, staa and students simply show the driver their Illinois ID Card when boarding the bus and there will be no additional charge.
  • Some routes extend into Savoy, just south of Champaign-Urbana.
  • Campus Buses (like the 22 Illini, 24, 21 Quad, 26 Pack) stop at all the corners on campus, not just at bus stops. They also don't require you to show your ID.
  • During regular in-session times, the university also runs a "SafeRides" program. If you call MTD or show up in one of the appointed places (the Union or Main Library), a van will pick you up and drive you home (within reason :) ).
  • Every MTD bus has a bike rack to allow bicyclists to use the buses (folding bicycles are allowed to board).Image:mtd_bikerack.jpg
  • CUMTD buses have gotten the full high-tech treatment with the STOPwatch program. You can check via your cell phone SMS/web browser when a CUMTD bus is due at a particular stop, and get a live estimate based on the actual current bus location (every bus uses GPS and radio to continually report its location). One big benefit: you'll know if a bus is about to show up, or if you've just missed one and should go do something else for half an hour. A few larger bus stops feature this information on big electronic displays, and inside buses there are displays of upcoming intersections (great when taking a route you are not familiar with). The displays/web/SMS systems still need to be a little clearer about those times when the system has lost contact with a bus (so is then reporting times based only on the pre-planned schedule) but overall a very impressive system.

[edit] Taxi Cabs

  • Taxis are probably the most expensive transportation option in Champaign-Urbana. However for the elderly or people with mobility difficulties, or otherwise choose to use a taxi, there are several options available.
  • If you have an early morning flight, be sure to call and reserve a cab the night before! Otherwise you may find that all the taxis with all the taxi companies are busy, and you'll be S.O.L. This is a small town, remember.
  • The cab services below are not particularly recommended, but are better than some:
    • Yellow-Checker: (217) 355-3553
    • Your Cab Service: (217) 621-4938
      "Will Go Anywhere"

[edit] Getting to Chicago

  • AMTRAK train service offers three trains daily between Champaign and downtown Chicago. The City of New Orleans line (made famous in song) runs all the way from the Gulf of Mexico to Chicago and back, daily. The Saluki travels between Chicago and Carbondale, Illinois (home of Southern Illinois University). The 'Illini' was recently added to the line for late morning service between (?) and Chicago. See http://Amtrak.com for more information.

LEX van and bus service to Midway and O'Hare Airports and other locations. http://www.lincolnlandexpress.com Suburban Express van and bus service to Midway and O'Hare Airports and other locations. http://www.suburbanexpress.com

[edit] Related Links

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