Local and regional groups are also working to make bicycling better throughout the state – often in conjunction with Ride Illinois. Become more involved with bicycling advocacy in your community by working with these groups, local bike clubs and, of course, Ride Illinois.
Active Transportation Alliance (Chicago advocacy organization for bicycling, walking and public transit)
Bike BloNo (advocacy group promoting the bicycle for everyday transportation in Bloomington-Normal)
Bike Peoria (advocacy group with a volunteer/member workshop space for tool-sharing and teaching/offering repair and maintenance skills and assistance)
Bikeable Roads and Trails (DuPage County—part of the Conservation Foundation and previously called The Trails Project)
Blackstone Bicycle Works (Chicago – youth education programs, accepts bike donations)
Champaign County Bikes (promotes bicycling for recreation and transportation)
Friends of Cycling in Elk Grove (Elk Grove Village)
Friends of Parks (Morrison), contact Glen Ackeberg
Friends of the Bloomingdale Trail (Chicago)
Friends of the Calumet-Sag Trail (southwest suburban Chicago area)
Friends of the Constitution Trail (Bloomington-Normal)
Friends of the Great Western Trails (Kane and DuPage counties)
Friends of the Hennepin Canal (Bureau, Henry, Lee, Rock Island and Whiteside counties)
Friends of the Rock Island Trail (northeast of Peoria)
Friends of the Trail (promoting development of trails in Quincy)
Illinois Prairie Path (Maywood west with spurs to Elgin, Aurora and Batavia)
Lake County Bike Project (Lake County organization that advocates cycling, hosts events and workshops, and gives donated bikes to lower income households and children)
McHenry County Bicycle Advocates (formed to advocate on behalf of all McHenry County bicycle riders)
Old Plank Road Trail Association (Joliet east to Matteson)
Quad Cities Transportation Alternatives Group (encourages walking, biking and public transit)
The Bike Project of Urbana-Champaign (non-profit group with co-op and outreach programs)
The Chainlink (Chicago area online resource with information on bicycling, rides, events, news, etc.)
The Recyclery (Chicago non-profit used bicycle collective)
Trail Recreation of Effingham County
Trailnet (trail and community advocacy in the bi-state St. Louis regional area)
West Town Bikes (Chicago community bicycle learning workshop)
Working Bikes Cooperative (Chicago not-for-profit group that accepts donations of bikes, sells used bikes and donates bikes to organizations)
WBRP Bike Co-op (The Bike Co-op is focused on providing accessible transportation and fostering community health for West Bloomington residents.)
Many municipalities have bicycle advisory commissions and/or bicycling programs, often the result of a push from local cyclists. Check with your city or village officials to find out what types of bicycling programs are occurring in your community. If there are none, Ride Illinois can help you try to get a group started.