Illinois Department of Transportation Welcomes Bicyclists for Safe Summer Fun

We recently told you about the new Kinzie Bike Lane on our Chicago Personal Injury Lawyers Blog. This bike lane was created to help decrease the number of bicycling accidents on our roadways.

Bicyclists account for more than 30 percent of the traffic on that roadway. The construction for this project started back on June 6th. The new lane will sit adjacent to the curb and will come with a lane width varying between 5-1/2 to 7 feet wide. The bike lane is separated from traffic by a 4-foot-wide buffer zone.

We have also published concerns about the safety of the bike lane along the lakefront. Our Chicago bicycling accident attorneys encourage you to do your part in ensuring everyone's safety on these lanes. While many accidents are caused by careless or inattentive motorists, riders can do their part; be courteous to one another in an attempt to reduce these potentially fatal accidents.

The City of Chicago currently has over 110 miles of on-street bike lanes, more than 30 miles of shared bike lanes and many miles of off-street paths. One of Chicago's most popular bicycling paths is the Lakefront Trail, which is nearly 20 miles long. To help encourage bicycling in the area, the city also installed thousands of bike racks. They also have sheltered bike parking at a number of CTA rail stations, according to the Chicago Department of Transportation.

The Illinois Department of Transportation suggests proper trail etiquette to help keep you safe:

-Stay right.

-Yield to walkers.

-Pass to the left -- announce your intentions before overtaking slower traffic.

-Avoid stopping or blocking the path.

-Leash and control your pet.

-Properly dispose of trash.

-Avoid contact with unknown plant species; poison oak and poison ivy are plentiful.

-Wear a helmet.

Government officials are stepping up their efforts to protect Illinois bicyclists as well. The state of Illinois is waiting for Gov. Quinn’s to sign a bill into law that would allow bicyclists to treat “demand-actuated” red lights as stop signs. This would only be permitted to go through a red light if the signal does not change to green “within a reasonable period of time”. This law was proposed by Illinois motorcyclists. It would allow both motorcycles and bicycles to legally travel through a red light if the signal fails to detect them waiting. This law would affect all of the state except Chicago.

It is estimated that there are approximately 1,300 bicycling accident in Chicago every year. Safer bike lanes, cautious bicyclists and alert motorists can help reduce the number of yearly accidents.

If you have been injured in a bicycle accident, contact the Chicago personal injury lawyers at Abels & Annes for a free and confidential appointment to discuss your rights. Call (866) 99-ABELS. There is no fee unless you win.

More Blog Entries:

Windy City Rated Near Top by Cyclists; Advocates Work to Reduce Risk of Chicago Bicycle Accidents, Chicago Personal Injury Lawyer Blog, June 13, 2011

Chicago bike accident on the North Shore injures 1, Chicago Personal Injury Lawyer Blog, May 2, 2011

Dooring to be tracked as cause of bicycle accidents in Chicago, elsewhere , Chicago Personal Injury Lawyer Blog, April 28, 2011

Chicago Car Accident Lawyer

Chicago gets tougher on bicyclists disobeying the rules of the road

Last week the Chicago Police Department, the Chicago Department of Transportation, and the City of Chicago’s Bicycling Ambassadors program kicked off part of what officials call their “Share the Road” campaign aimed at enforcing Chicago’s oft-disregarded biking traffic laws and educating citizens on the proper ways to avoid injuring cyclists on the road, the Chicago Tribune is reporting. According to officials, 240 warnings and one ticket were given over a two-hour period at a single intersection during rush hour.

The intersection of Milwaukee Avenue and Desplaines and Kinzie Street was chosen because of the high volume of bicyclists who often pedal through red lights and encroach on crosswalks meant for pedestrians, making accidents and close calls a regular occurrence. As officials issued the warnings to cyclists and stressed the importance of following the law, some cyclists reminded officials that they were well aware of the laws and were only breaking them to avoid having to share the road with aggressive motorists who frequently cut them off and are generally unaware of their presence.

According to CDOT, an average of 1,300 crashes involving bicyclists occur every year in Chicago and about five of those end in death. As biking becomes more popular in the face of high gas prices and traffic congestion, the city is taking steps to increase biker safety through the education of motorists and cyclists, while improving the infrastructure of biking routes.

Coinciding with the sting operation was a press conference by Mayor Rahm Emanuel to kick off construction on a half-mile stretch of protected bike lanes running on Kinzie Street from Milwaukee Avenue to Wells Street, the first of a planned 100 miles of protected bike routes being built in the next four years, according to the Chicago Sun-Times.

“I want Chicago to be the bike-friendliest city in the country,” Emanuel said.

While protected bicycling lanes, stricter enforcement of bicycling traffic laws, and increased safety education is welcome in a city where bicycling injuries are all too common, there is still a dire need for drivers to become more educated and aware of the laws, as often their ignorance or lack of awareness is to blame for bicycling accidents. Even the most diligent bicyclist is subject to potential serious injury as long as motorists continue to swerve into bike lanes, open their doors without checking for oncoming bikers, and turn in front of unseen riders as they lose focus on congested streets.

Illinois bike accident attorneys at our firm applaud the City of Chicago for taking steps to increase bicycle safety, but we still remain adamant that without a substantial effort to crack down on motorists who violate the rules of the road, injuries to bicyclists will remain both prevalent and avoidable.

For more information on bicycling safety and Chicago’s plans to improve cycling in the city, please visit the links below:

* Illinois Department of Transportation Bicycling Information
* City of Chicago Bicycling Information
* Bike 2015
* Chicago Bike Program

This article was co-written by Shane Nichols, a 2nd year law student at the John Marshall Law School in Chicago.

Chicago Car Accident Lawyer

Distracted Driving Greatly Increases the Change of Chicago Motor Vehicle Accidents involving Pedestrians, Bicyclists and Motorcyclists

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