After a troubling rise in crashes, injuries, and fatalities on DuSable Lake Shore Drive, State Senator Sara Feigenholtz is spearheading a new effort to improve traffic safety along the high-speed corridor.
“After repeatedly hearing from concerned community members and traffic safety advocates about vehicle crashes and fatalities along DuSable Lake Shore Drive, I knew action was needed,” Feigenholtz said in a press release.
Over a five-year span, the iconic roadway has seen more than 16,000 crashes, including 59 fatalities and over 4,000 injuries — numbers that Feigenholtz calls unacceptable. She argues that current enforcement measures, such as speed cameras, aren’t doing enough to deter reckless driving.
“Traditional speed cameras that just ticket people don’t address the root problem,” she said. “We need safety solutions that accomplish more by truly changing drivers’ behavior.”
Feigenholtz introduced Senate Bill 1507, which would direct the University of Illinois Chicago’s Urban Transportation Center to conduct a comprehensive study on the causes of traffic collisions and whether alternative traffic enforcement technologies could reduce dangerous driving. The study would also examine international models, such as the use of randomized speed cameras in Germany and the Netherlands — systems shown to encourage long-term behavior changes among drivers.
“Data on the use of randomized speed cameras in Germany and the Netherlands shows that the strategy is highly effective and has a long-term impact on encouraging and incentivizing safer driving and behavior changes,” Feigenholtz said.
The senator noted that DuSable Lake Shore Drive cuts through nearly five miles of her district, making the issue especially personal. Despite being one of the city’s most prominent and heavily traveled routes, the corridor hasn’t seen major safety upgrades in decades.
“The last time significant safety improvements were made on DLSD was over 30 years ago — it’s time for some movement,” Feigen Holtz said.
(0) comments
Welcome to the discussion.
Log In
Keep it Clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Don't Threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be Truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
Be Nice. No racism, sexism or any sort of -ism that is degrading to another person.
Be Proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
Share with Us. We'd love to hear eyewitness accounts, the history behind an article.