Category Archives: Chicago Department of Transportation

Chicago’s E-Scooters To Be Banned From Lakefront and 606 Trails

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WTTW reported this week that Chicago’s e-scooter program would not allow riders on the 606 trail. The Chicago Department of Transportation (“CDOT”) originally stated that the e-scooters would not be allowed on the lakefront pathway, but announced yesterday that the ban would also include the city’s busy 606 trail.

 The 606 is a 2.7-mile elevated rail trail running east–west on the northwest side of Chicago. The 606 is the former Bloomingdale Triain Line, which was converted into an elevated greenway, which runs through the Logan Square, Humbolt Park and West Town neighborhoods.

CDOT unsurprisingly also anounced that e-scooters would be banned from the downtown river walk and from O’Hare airport. E-scooter companies will bid for three (3) available two-year licenses from the city to deploy a maximum of 3,000 scooters on Chicago’s streets this spring. Each firm would be allowed no more than 1,000 scooters, according to the rules. 

“Companies will be allowed to deploy additional devices if they meet specific ridership, safety, compliance and education requirements,” according to a statement from the departments of Transportation and Business Affairs and Consumer Protection.

The program could expand to 12,500 scooters with the support of Chicago Department of Transportation Commissioner Gia Biagi’s support.

The deadline for firms to apply is Feb. 18, officials said. 

I think this is the right move by CDOT and the city council. The lakefront, 606 and riverwalk are all incredibly busy trails that can attract thousands of walkers, runner and bicyclists per day during warm weather. The addition of e-scooters, which are implemented to help reduce vehicle traffic on the city streets, would could cause undo congestion on the trails. The e-scooters will be available to rent through an online app, similar to the Divvy bicycles are currently available.

If you or a loved one have been seriously injured in a Chicago traffic accident or Chicago truck crash, then call Chicago injury lawyer, Aaron J. Bryant, for a free legal consultation at 312-614-1076.

Chicago E-Scooter Program Will Become Permanent

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Multiple local news outlets reported that the Chicago Department of Transportation (“CDOT”) has pushed forward a vote make Chicago’s -e-scooter program permanent after two sperate pilot programs. The City’s transportation committee approved making the program permanent and the entire city council will vote to enact today.

If approved the new program will authorize the transportation department to issue up to three licenses to scooter-sharing companies, with each company free to deploy 2,000 scooters per day, from 5 a.m. to midnight. The city will receive $1 per day for each scooter plus a 9% lease tax.

The new program will make the scooter more available throughout the city and for a longer period of time. The scooters will not be allowed on the lakefront. The technology will disable the scooter once they leave an authorized zone.

The safety issue, which appears to have been addressed by the transportation committee, is that the scooters will not work on sidewalks. CDOT has apparently been told that the technology will shut down a scooter once a rider tries to use on a sidewalk. I am somewhat dubious of this program due to the already crowded streets and bike lanes. The reporting on the committee meeting did now say whether scooters will be designated to bike lanes. If they are, will this create an issue between scooter riders and bicyclists? Also, will helmets be required for all scooter riders. These are some of the safety issues I believe need to discussed. Regardless, this program is moving forward as the vote is expected to pass today.

If you or a loved one has been seriously injured in a Chicago bike accident or Chicago traffic accident, then call Chicago injury lawyer, Aaron J. Bryant, for a free legal consultation at 312-614-1076.

Chicago Aims To Combat Downtown Traffic Congestion

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Multiple news outlets, including Chicago Curbed, reported last week that Chicago’s new Mayor Lori Lightfoot is looking decrease downtown traffic congestion with improvements to the CTA bus system and an overhaul of ride sharing laws.

First, the city announced a $20 million budget for the Bus Priority Zone Program. This budget aims to add additional bus-only lanes, queue jump signals, and better traffic light timing to some of Chicago’s highest ridership routes. These traffic improvements aim to remove slow zones, bottlenecks, delays, and bunched up buses that come one right after the other.

Safety improvements will make it easier to walk and bike to bus stops as well. Riders will notice new pavement markers, clearer street-level and overhead signs, safer bus stop locations with curb extensions and pedestrian refuge islands.

This is a huge step by the city’s Department of Transportation as it continues to battle ride sharing companies for ridership. The amount of congestion seen on our roads can easily pointed to the number of rideshare vehicle on the road. Commuters don’t mind paying a few extra dollars for an Uber or Lyft ride in order to avoid a packed bus that is constantly in traffic gridlock during peak rush hours. Why not attempt to improve buse rides with bus only lanes, which will then lead to a quicker commute. This will then lead to less congestion on the road which is decrases commute time and better for our environment.

If you or a loved one has been seriously injured in a Chicago car crash or Chicago bus accident, then call Chicago personal injury lawyer, Aaron J. Bryant, for a free legal consultation at 312-614-1076

CDOT Proposing New Greenway And Bike Route In Lincoln Park Neighborhood

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Multiple news outlets reported last week that the Chicago Department of Transportation (“CDOT”) has proposed a new pedestrian and bicycle route on Dickens Avenue in Chicago’s Lincoln Park neighborhood. The proposed route would run east-west on Dickens from Clybourn Street all the way to the lakefront trail. The proposed pathway would allow much easier access for pedestrians and bicyclists to access the Lincoln Park, Lincoln Park Zoo and the lakefront.

The proposal has been named the Dickens Avenue Greenway Project and it would lower the speed limit to 20 miles per hour, add speed bumps and raised crosswalks with an aim to create an east/west bike route between a low-traffic connection between the 606 and the lakefront trail. Proponents include 43rd Ward Alderman Michelle Smith, 43rd Ward Alderman, who issued a statement saying “CDOT approached us about the greenway concept. Constituents have been asking for solutions to increase traffic safety.” Opponents have stated they have concerns about increased bicycle traffic, which would just be a duplicate of the dedicated bicycle lanes one block south on Armitage Avenue.

I would like to see the full proposal from CDOT, which would include an actual layout of the design of the plan. I actually live in this neighborhood, and am a proponent of increasing green traffic solutions. If this could possibly decrease the amount of vehicle traffic in the neighborhood, then I think this is a no-brainer. I just would like to see the full plan first.

If you or a loved one has been seriously injured in a Chicago bicycle accident or Chicago traffic accident, then call Chicago car crash lawyer, Aaron J. Bryant, for a free legal consultation at 312-614-1076.

Chicago Department of Transportation Launched New Traffic App: ChiStreetWorks

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Those who live in Chicago know how bad traffic is in this city. It can be incredibly stressful, especially during summer months as there seem to be an abnormally high number of people on the road. The cities’ Department of Transportation (“CDOT”) has launched a new web based application call ChiStreetWorks with the purpose of helping drivers plan their trips in order to avoid major traffic jams.

The new App allows you to see past, current and future projects, as well as view permits for water, sewer, gas or electrical projects impacting City streets. The website went live to the public on Tuesday.

The map also provides users with features such as bus routes and stops, parking impacts, bike lanes, viaduct heights, speed and red light camera locations, and current traffic conditions. It also allows you to view where special events are taking place. 

Users can browse specific areas of the city by searching by neighborhood, ward, ZIP code, street intersection, or address and then select which categories of data they want to see: construction projects, utility-related permits, resurfacing memorandums, events impacting traffic, street closures, and detours. There’s also a tool to filter results by time to show activity from the past month or up to one year in the future.

This is a great initiative by the city, which provides much more detail than a typical Google or Apple Maps. We will see if it helps free up traffic and hopefully decrease the number of traffic accidents in the area.

If you or a loved on have been seriously injured in a Chicago car accident or Chicago truck accident, then please call Chicago personal injury attorney, Aaron J. Bryant, for a free legal consultation at 312-614-1076.

Chicago Department Of Transportation Releases Detailed Car Crash Information

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Last month the Chicago Department of Transportation (“CDOT”) released to the public detailed car accident data from September 2017 through July 2018. According to CDOT, the information was released as “a move toward transparency and part of push for more analysis that could help the city make headway in its ‘Vision Zero’ initiative aiming at ultimately reducing the number of traffic deaths to zero.”

The data revealed that since September of last year there have been 101,760 car crashes on Chicago streets. Below is some of the more detailed data that was disclosed:

The police department counted 18,885 injuries resulting from the crashes, 100 of them fatal.

• About 4 percent of crashes involved a vehicle hitting a cyclist or a pedestrian.

• Cellphone use — including texting — was found to be responsible in 188 crashes. More broadly, “distraction from inside the vehicle” as well as from other types of electronic devices was the cause of 817 car crashes.

• The police were unable to determine a primary contributor to a crash about 34.6 percent of the time. “Failing to yield right-of-way” was the top known cause of crashes, accounting for 12.1 percent of them. The second-leading cause of crashes was “following too closely,” which accounted for 11 percent.

This release of information was incredibly forthcoming and I believe will be helpful towards the city’s “Vision Zero” plan. I wonder, though, how accurate the distracted driver (texting) information is. If they are merely looking at Illinois Traffic Crash Report data and causes that are checked off, I do not think those numbers would be completely accurate. For example, a driver could have been ticketed for “failure to yield” or “driving too closely” but the crash reports may not show that the driver may have failed to yield because they were looking at their phone. I think a more detailed analysis of these numbers is needed.

If you or a loved one has been seriously injured in a Chicago car accident or Chicago truck accident, then call Chicago personal injury lawyer, Aaron J. Bryant, for a free legal consultation at 312-614-1076.

Chicago To Add Five New Speeder Cameras This Summer

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The Chicago Department of Transportation (“CDOT”) announced last week that they would be adding five (5) new speeder cameras around the city by the end of the summer. Two (2) of the cameras will be placed at Hiawatha and Kosciuszko parks on the Northwest Side. The other three (3) cameras will be placed near Major Hector P. Garcia MD High School on the Southwest Side, Near North Montessori School on the Near Northwest Side and Gary Comer College Prep High School on the South Side.

CDOT told the Chicago Tribune that ““Automated speed enforcement is a proven deterrent to speeding, and one of the most effective tools in our toolbox for reducing speeding and saving lives.” They further pointed out that this was another step in Mayor Emanuel’s “Vision Zero” plan, which is aimed at eliminating all traffic accident deaths by the year 2026.

I have written on the site multiple times about red light and speed cameras. Based on multiple studies (and a bribery scandal), the red light cameras have come under a lot of scrutiny for any safety value added to the community. On the other hand, speeder cameras, have not undergone as much scrutiny. For one, they are newer to Chicago and we don’t know the actual net impact they are providing for motorists and pedestrian safety. According to CDOT, safety cameras are actually making streets and walkways safer throughout the city. According to the Department the number of speeding violations has been trending down in areas with speed cameras since they were deployed in 2014, and average traffic speed has dropped from 26 mph to 22.5 mph. Crash data also show that the number of car crashes in areas with speed cameras was down 4 percent in 2015 compared to 2013, while for the rest of the city crashes were up 13 percent.

If you or a loved one has been seriously injured in a Chicago car crash or Chicago pedestrian accident, then call Chicago personal injury attorney, Aaron J. Bryant, for a free legal consultation at 312-614-1076.

Traffic Light Funding Approved For Deadly Stretch Of Devon Ave

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NBC 5 reported last month that funding for a new traffic light has finally been approved on Devon Avenue near Le Mai Street in Chicago’s West Rogers Park neighborhood. This stretch of Devon has dubbed “Devon Speedway” by local residents as drivers are known to zoom by at rates of 60 mph despite a speed limit of 30. The funding finally came to fruition after a young man was rear-ended on his motorcycle and killed last month. This was one of multiple deadly traffic accidents in this area over the last several years. 39th Ward Alderman Margaret Laurino informed news outlets after this last car crash that funding had been had finally been approved for a new traffic light.

It’s a shame that it has taken the city this long to approve a traffic light that was obviously needed years ago. According to this report, a study was supposed to have been performed by the city’s department of transportation (CDOT) back in 2013. The family of deceased motorcycle driver will more than likely file a wrongful death lawsuit against the driver who rear-ended him. I think there is also potential to name the city of Chicago in this lawsuit. Government entities typically have immunity to lawsuits involving negligence unless the entity had notice of the issue (here lack of traffic light) and failed to address the issue. Here the deceased’s family could argue that the city knew as far back as 2013 that this stretch of Devon Avenue was incredibly dangerous and there had been requests for a traffic light, yet they waited five (5) years and after the most recent car accident death to provide the appropriate funding.

If you or a loved one has been seriously injured in a Chicago car crash or Chicago motorcycle accident, then call Chicago personal injury lawyer, Aaron J. Bryant for a free legal consultation at 312-614-1076

Chicago’s Lakefront Trail Construction To Be Completed By End Of Year

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The Chicago Sun Times reported last week about the construction developments for the lakefront trail. According to the Chicago Department of Transportation (CDOT), all efforts to revamp the trail will be completed by the end of 2018.

The purpose for all of the construction that has taken place the last several years has been to create separate lanes for cyclists and runners/walkers. Their goal is to make a safer path, which would reduce the number of collisions between bikers and runners.

The remaining construction includes the Navy Pier flyover, which included a ramp that will carry users over two busy intersections and connect to the Lake Shore Drive underpass. Currently, pedestrians and cyclists have to use the sidewalk underneath Lakeshore Drive, which is often congested and dangerous.

Much of the construction is complete, which covers an eighteen (18) mile stretch from Ardmore on the North side to 71st street on the South side. There are pockets where construction is set to start in August, but is said to be complete by the end of the year.

I have praised this construction project since it was announced over a year ago. Separate lanes for cyclists and runners was a bold project, but it seems to be working. The areas where the construction is complete has made the lakefront much less congested, which will hopefully  lead to less accidents.

Should you or a loved one be injured in a Chicago bicycle accident, or Chicago car accident, please call Chicago personal injury attorney, Aaron J. Bryant, for a free legal consultation at 312-614-1076.

City of Chicago To Use Data And Analytics To Reduce Car Crashes

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The City of Chicago Department of Transportation (“CDOT”) issued a press release this week regarding their “Vision Zero” plan, which is an effort to eliminate all pedestrian traffic deaths in the city by the year 2026. The plan was introduced one year ago.

As part of their  release, CDOT announced it has entered a data partnership with Arity, a subsidiary of The Allstate Insurance. Arity is a connected car technology company that collects nearly one billion miles of driving and connected car data per month from more than one million mobile phone and in-car devices. Arity has a unique, user centric view of a city’s mobility patterns and ability to identify driving behaviors that carry the most risk and cause severe traffic accidents.  CDOT stated that it will be using the data and predictive analytics to better understand the risk factors of specific segments of roadways and intersections throughout Chicago.

From the release: “partnership will be used help the City identify the risk factors on specific roadways and help determine where to best prioritize and focus investments in infrastructure and traffic safety resources, as well as how to tailor interventions to improve road safety in Chicago.”

I think this is an incredibly important investment by the city.  I imagine that the use of this advanced data will  city will be able to determine where to put additional cross-walk and pedestrian signs, where to add four-way stops, where widen roads and I’m sure other safety measures.

It’s interesting that this was just announced. As I wrote within the last few weeks, pedestrian deaths in Chicago are outpacing the number of fatalities over the last several years. “Vision Zero” is off to a slow start, but hopefully this partnership with Arity will help curb that trend.

If you or a loved on has been seriously injured in a Chicago pedestrian accident or Chicago traffic accident, then call Chicago personal injury attorney, Aaron J. Bryant, for a free legal consultation at 312-614-1076.