Often, as I’ve strolled past the colorful storefronts of Chicago’s Chinatown, I’ve noticed many cheap department-store-type mountain bikes—Huffys, Murrays, and Magnas—cable-locked to racks, poles, and fences along Cermak Road and Wentworth Avenue. I wondered if they belonged to recent immigrants to the neighborhood, toiling at blue-collar jobs in pursuit of the American dream.
“Many residents, and especially workers in Chinatown’s core, use bicycles as their main form of transportation,” according to the vision plan. The plan calls for adding more bike infrastructure to “help Chinatown evolve into one of Chicago’s most bike-friendly neighborhoods.”
At Sun-Yet-Sen Park at 24th and Princeton, we saw men playing Xiangqi, a board game also known as Chinese chess. Near the park we flagged down 75-year-old Xing Hua Wu, pedaling from the grocery store to his sister’s home. A former employee of Chinatown restaurant Lao Szechaun, Wu is also from Taishan, and said he rides his bike everywhere he goes.
“It’s pretty common for immigrants to use bikes to get around,” said Guan, who’s studying to be an occupational therapist at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. “Biking has always been a big form of transportation in China so, for many people, when they come here, it’s the same thing.” However, the guys said their parents no longer ride bikes either.
It was disheartening to hear that many Chinese people are rejecting the bicycle as they become more affluent, both in China and as immigrants to the midwest. But it was encouraging to talk with young people and youthful seniors who still see the value of two-wheeled transportation. Hopefully as Chinatown’s bike infrastructure improves, more neighborhood residents from all walks of life will embrace the practical and pleasurable aspects of cycling. v
