Chicago Accident and Injury Lawyer Blog

Like many in Chicago, the personal injury and wrongful death attorneys at the Law Offices of Jeffrey J. Kroll recently noticed the department store mannequins, stencils and stickers that have graced Chicago's taxis, bus stops, trash cans, sidewalks and streets. The message comes from city officials: Let's eliminate pedestrian deaths in the city. According to the Chicago Tribune, city officials "appear willing to try whatever tricks it may take to eliminate pedestrian deaths…." The recent effort involves city officials placing 32 mannequins, which represent the 32 pedestrians killed in Chicago area crashes in 2010. The city's goal is to eliminate all pedestrian deaths by 2020. For more information visit chicagopedestrianplan.org.

Last summer, the Illinois legislature amended the Illinois statute, specifically 625 ILCS 5/11-1002, requiring all drivers to STOP and yield the right-of-way to pedestrians using crosswalks if there are no traffic control devices present. This week, Illinois law makers also introduced legislation, which -- if enacted -- would allow speed cameras on many Chicago streets in an effort to safeguard children and other pedestrians near schools and parks. Further efforts include Chicago police officers posing as pedestrians at crosswalk to catch approaching vehicles who fail to properly stop for pedestrians. Officers will issue tickets with fines ranging from $50.00 to $500.00, for drivers who fail to stop. City officials are also exploring other safety initiatives, including a street-crossing flag campaign at intersections and mid-block crosswalks on smaller streets.

According to the Tribune, a City of Chicago pedestrian-traffic study released this summer found that close to "80 percent of vehicle-pedestrian crashes in Chicago occur at intersections and commonly involve people crossing the street with a walk signal." Pedestrians have a duty to use ordinary care for their own safety when crossing at a crosswalk. Sandquist v. Kefalopoulos, 49 Ill. App. 3d 456 (1st Dist. 1977). Even when a pedestrian fails to maintain a constant lookout for turning vehicles, but reasonably and cautiously entered the street, a finding of contributory negligence against the pedestrian is improper. Moore v. Checker Taxi Co., 133 Ill. App. 2d 588 (1st Dist. 1971) (affirming jury's guilty finding against defendants even though pedestrian did not use crosswalk to cross the street).

The Chicago pedestrian injury attorneys at the Law Offices of Jeffrey J. Kroll support the City of Chicago's efforts to eliminate pedestrian deaths in our city. We hope that the Chicago Pedestrian Plan meets its goal. Their efforts are much needed. After all, a Transportation for American report ranked the Chicago-Naperville-Joliet area as the 38th most dangerous metro area in the United States, reporting 1,322 pedestrian fatalities between 2000 and 2009.

The Chicago pedestrian accident and injury attorneys at the Law Offices of Jeffrey J. Kroll have over 20 years experience representing injured bicyclists and pedestrians, securing multimillion dollar settlements and verdicts for their clients. Jeff Kroll has dedicated his career to helping injured clients gain justice.