Category Archives: Uncategorized

In a legislation session in Illinois we see a plethora of new traffic laws take effect after the new year. This year I am only seeing one major traffic law change. HB 1784 will allow allows motorists to pass cyclists in no-passing zones and permits bicycling on road shoulders.

“This new legislation legalizes some common motorist and bicyclist traffic practices,” said Ed Barsotti, Ride Illinois’ chief programs officer, in a statement. “The intent is to make the roads safer while improving car-bicycle interactions.”

The reason for the change in the law is the often times motorists do not want to change lanes in a no-passing zone, and their attempts to pass the bicyclists, while in the same lane, leads to dangerously close traffic. The new law will hopefully give motorists the confidence to safely pass a bicyclist (who is riding less than half the posted speed limit) in a no-passing lane.

I think we can all agree that common sense traffic laws like these should be passed when they solve problems and make the roads safer for motorists and bicyclists to share the road together.

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

Over the weekend a fatal truck accident in New Jersey claimed the life of one person and critically injured
three others, including famous comedian, Tracy Morgan. Court papers filed in
charges made against the truck driver who allegedly caused the traffic accident,
claim that he had been awake for 24 hours prior to the accident.

Interestingly, a few days prior to
this accident, the Senate Appropriations Committee passed an amendment  that would suspend a requirement that truck drivers rest for at least 34 consecutive hours — including
two nights from 1 a.m. to 5 a.m. — before beginning their next work
week. The so-called “restart” regulation was among a number of
changes that took effect last summer with the aim
of reducing driver fatigue. According to a truck accident lawyer the new rules also limit the maximum average work week for truck drivers to 70 hours, a decrease from the previous maximum of 82 hours, and require drivers to take a 30-minute break during the first eight hours of a shift. 

The measure was pushed by Sen. Susan
Collins (R-Maine). The amendment it still needs to be adopted by the full
Senate and reconciled with appropriations legislation drawn up in the House.

This new bill is laughable and I see
very little chance of it passing the full Senate. Especially now that truck
driver fatigue is being pushed to the forefront after this tragic
accident. 

So what can be done to prevent
situations like this where the driver feels squeezed to meet his or her
deadline? The transportation companies – – and in this case Wal-Mart – – need
to heed the responsibility. Trucking companies are already responsible for the
negligent actions of their drivers. In this case, both the Wal-Mart and their
driver will be sued in civil court for the death of one passenger and the
injuries, bills and lost wages of the 3 others that were injured.  Is this
enough to prevent companies from putting their drivers in a time crunch where
they are missing breaks and/or sleep? Instead of rolling back the measures (as
discussed above) that were implemented last year, I think the Senate should
consider penalizing companies who ignore the federally regulated timelines.
Lives could be at stake.

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

The Chicago Tribune
reported today that plaintiffs in a class action lawsuit against General
Motors, based on the faulty ignition recall, has now added airbag manufacturer,
Continental AG, as an additional defendant.

Continental made airbag
systems for the recalled cars, including sensor 
that determine if and when the airbags go off in an accident, according
to the suit.

The case is among dozens
of proposed class actions that have been filed by customers accusing GM of
concealing its knowledge of the defect for more than a decades, putting
plaintiffs at risk of injury and causing them to suffer economic losses on
their cars, including lower resale value.

If jostled or bumped,
the ignition switch can change from the “run” to “accessory” position, shutting
off engines and disabling power steering, power brakes and airbags.

The lawsuit says that
Continental’s system was defective because the airbag system would shut off
when the key switched positions, and the combination of alleged defects was “particularly
dangerous.”

I have to be honest, I
am really not sure how this benefits the class action lawsuit plaintiffs,
unless they are arguing that the airbags were faulty as well and the plaintiffs
(consumers) need to be reimbursed for this defect in their vehicle as well.
This is definitely news for the 12 wrongful death cases out there that were
allegedly caused by the faulty ignitions. Plaintiffs in those cases now have
multiple fingers to point out at when assessing liability. Attorneys will argue
that not only did the ignition cause these cars to stall, but the airbags did
not respond properly (even though they knew about the issue since 2005) and
those airbags could have saved lives.

If you or someone you
love has been injured in a Chicago car crash or by a Chicago auto defect, then
call Chicago personal injury attorney, Aaron Bryant, for a free legal consultation at 312-588-3384.  

It’s been a year or two
since I have written about bike lanes in Chicago. As I mentioned in the past,
Chicago has been at the forefront in carving out bike only lanes. Specifically,
a long stretch of Dearborn Street in Chicago’s loop is specified for
bicyclists. The Chicago Tribune reported last week that more
“bike only” lanes are coming to the city this spring. 

 On
the North Side, a lane is planned for North Broadway Avenue between Montrose
and Foster avenues. In the Loop, Harrison Street will get a bike lane from
Desplaines Street to Wabash Avenue. On the West Side, a lane is scheduled to go
in on Lake Street from Austin Boulevard to Central Park Avenue.

In
addition, the city plans 15 more miles of buffer-protected bike lanes this
spring. The painted lanes are planned for California Avenue between Augusta
Boulevard and North Avenue; Street from 26th to 31st streets and Stony Island
Avenue from 56th to 63^rd streets, according to transportation
officials.

The
city also is in the planning phase for 30 more miles of bike projects for the
end of this year and early 2015, including Randolph Street from Michigan Avenue
to the lakefront trail

This
is a great move by the city as we know that vehicle traffic in Chicago is some
of the worst in the city. The fewer cars on the road the better for everyone.
But both drivers and bicyclists need to be wary of each other by following all
the traffic laws and respecting each others’ space. Bicycle accidents can be
some of the most dangerous and deadly, so bikers and drivers are better off
proceeding with caution when driving near each other in the busy downtown loop. 

If you or someone you know has been injured in a Chicago bicycle accident or Chicago car crash, then call Chicago personal injury attorney, Aaron Bryant, for a free legal consultation at 312-614-1076 for a free legal consultation. 

Following the Blue Line CTA crash at Chicago’s O’Hare airport last week, there has been a war words
between the Union chief and the CTA regarding the train operators condition at
the time of the train accident. Both sides are using the media to argue their
version of events. According to the Chicago Tribune, Union head,
Robert Kelly, said the operator had worked
69 hours in the seven days prior to the train crash. She was a fill-in employee,
known as an “extra board,” meaning she called in around 4:30 p.m.
each day to learn her shift, he said.

CTA spokesman Brian
Steele disputed Kelly’s claim about the operator’s hours, saying she had worked
55 hours in the seven days preceding the incident and was off for 18 hours
prior to her shift during which the incident occurred. In the previous week, the
operator’s longest shift was 9.2 hours, Steele said.

The CTA accused the
outspoken union leader of making “untruthful and irresponsible”
claims in an attempt to interfere with the investigation into the crash, which
injured at least 30 people and caused more than $6 million in damage to the
train and station.

“As has become his
common response in issues involving his union, Bob Kelly is again providing
false and misleading information in an effort to distort the truth and divert
attention away from his union,” the CTA said in a statement shortly after
Kelly spoke at a press conference.

Regardless of how many
hours the operator had worked in the days prior to train crash, it is
undisputed that she had dozed off, which would probably be considered negligent
behavior. The CTA is responsible for its’ employees negligent behavior
regardless if she is a member of a Union. Further, there is the issue of
whether the emergency brake was working at the time, which should have
prevented the train for derailing. As I wrote last week, the NTSB already
stated that the emergency brake did not activate at the time of the train
crash. I’m sure more will be learned as the investigation continues.

If you or someone you
love has been injured in a CTA train crash, Chicago bus accident or Chicago caraccident, then call Chicago personal injury attorney, Aaron Bryant, for a freelegal consultation at 312-588-3384. 

Those of us who live in
Chicago (or any cold weather city) know that there are multiple problems that
come with snow, ice and sub zero temperatures. It’s not just driving through
treacherous roads or walking down icy sidewalks. It’s also the resulting
pothole epidemic that invades the streets of Chicago. Anyone that has driven
through the city the past few months knows that our streets are filled with
potholes – – everywhere. This can be dangerous. It can cause major damage to
vehicles and more importantly lead to a car crash or truck accident. The city’s
residents have responded: Chicago’s 311
call center had received 47,227 complaints about potholes, more than triple the
15,641 calls the city received for the same period in 2011-12 and far more than
the 17,468 complaints it got during the same time frame last winter.

The Chicago
Tribune reported this week about what Mayor Emanuel is doing to combat
this issue. The mayor’s office has sent out 10
pothole-related announcements since Jan. 10 to highlight everything from more
street crews working extended hours to fill potholes to a Web page featuring a
map showing where streets have been patched. Emanuel said at a recent press
conference that the city would deploy “strike teams” to strategically fan
out and fill potholes on the major thoroughfares. The city isn’t adding more
crews, but it will have them focus on the busiest roads on Mondays and Fridays
instead of just responding to keep up with complaints on the 311 line.
According to the city, of the 47,227 pothole complaints the city has received
since Dec. 1, more than 28,878 are listed as resolved while an additional
18,349 have not been addressed, according to city figures.

What is
the mayor to do? Is it realistic to think there is more money to pour into this
situation? Or should this unusually cold and snowy winter be considered an
aberration. Regardless, driving through Chicago this winter is like driving
through a war zone, which includes a lot of dodging and weaving. This is not
safe for anyone. Hopefully the city can move quicker to help resolve this
problem.

If you
or someone you love has been injured in a Chicago truck accident or Chicago caraccident, then call Chicago personal injury attorney, Aaron Bryant, at
312-588-3384 for a free legal consultation. 

The Chicago
Tribune reported last month about an interesting investment being made
by the state of Illinois. Government officials are hoping a $45 million dollar
investment into highway technology will help decrease traffic congestion and
hopefully car accidents. 

Traffic
engineers are focusing initially on the Edens Expressway and the northern
stretch of U.S. Highway 41 and will begin incorporating a mix of existing and
new technology during the next two years, an undertaking that could spread to
the entire Chicago-area expressway system.

“We are trying to
fix a lot of problems with very cost-efficient solutions that can be introduced
relatively soon,” IDOT Secretary Ann Schneider said.

Those technologies include
travel-time estimates using motorists’ Bluetooth devices, bus-on-shoulder
service during rush hour, and traffic cameras along every interchange.

A major part of the
project will be a series of radar devices designed to detect wrong-way drivers
and warn other motorists about them. The problem causes more than 300
fatalities a year nationwide, according to the National Transportation Safety
Board.

The system, similar to
one already being tested in Peoria, will alert the wrong-way driver by
triggering flashing red lights, telling the driver not to enter the highway,
according to the Illinois Department of Transportation. It will also broadcast
warnings on electronic signs to warn oncoming drivers to stay in the far-right
lane to help prevent collisions, IDOT officials said.

Wrong-way drivers, the
vast majority of whom are intoxicated or older drivers, tend to steer to the
far right, which in the wrong direction of travel is the left lane for
right-way drivers, officials said.

In addition to alerting
drivers, the system could feed information to IDOT and the Illinois State
Police, said Steve Travia, IDOT’s bureau chief of Chicago-area traffic
operations.

The various projects are
in the preliminary engineering stage and construction will be done in phases, likely
starting in two years, Travia said. Schneider said she is hoping to accelerate
the schedule. Projects would be extended over time to other expressways in the
area.

I love investments like
these made by our government.  I will be interested to see what the results of these studies are and
whether more money will be invested. I would also like to see investments in studies that would provide information on how to deal with traffic congestion throughout Chicago. As we know traffic jams often arise due to car crashes and vice versa. 

If you or someone you
love has been injured in a Chicago car accident or Chicago truck accident, then
call Chicago personal injury attorney, Aaron Bryant, for a free legalconsultation at 312-588-3384.