Skip to Content
Streetsblog Chicago home
Log In
Bicycling

More Video Showing Drivers Are No More Likely to Stop at Signs Than Cyclists

7:06 PM CST on December 6, 2016

Time and time again in local editorials, op-eds, and comment sections, there's the complaint that bicyclists don't come to a complete stop at stop signs. This is despite the fact that it's safe for someone on a relatively slow, lightweight device with near-360-degree visibility to treat a stop sign like a yield sign.

It's extremely common for bike riders to decelerate when approaching a stop sign and check to make sure there's no vehicular or pedestrian cross traffic before proceeding through the intersection, rather than putting a foot down. In fact, this harmless, momentum-saving practice is completely legal in the Potato State, so it's known around the country as the "Idaho stop."

Meanwhile, it's dangerous by comparison to do the same thing when piloting a fast, multi-ton vehicle with blind spots. And yet, as video shot this summer by a Ravenswood Manor resident at Wilson and Francisco and posted on DNAinfo shows, it's very common for drivers to roll through stop signs.

Now we've got additional footage shot by Streetsblog Chicago reader J. Patrick Lynch that suggests this kind of driver behavior is the rule, rather than the exception, at four-way stop signs. He shot the video Monday at 6:30 p.m. at Adams and Aberdeen in the West Loop.

By my count, a full 39 of the 61 drivers of the vehicles visible in the video -- that's 64 percent -- failed to come to a complete stop. Most of these non-complying folks slowed down before entering the intersection, but a few scofflaws didn't seem to hit the brakes at all. When you're in control of a machine that can easily kill someone, that's a fairly reckless thing to do.

"I felt this was another good highlight of absurdity of motorists who complain about cyclists who don't come to complete stops," Lynch said.

Did you appreciate this post? Support Streetsblog Chicago and donate.

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from Streetsblog Chicago

Protected bike lanes are coming to Dearborn, Clark, and – maybe someday – Wells on Near North Side

Dearborn is getting northbound PBLs north of Kinzie, and Clark is getting southbound ones, but Wells Street will have to wait.

September 21, 2023

Taste of 79th Community Walk uses a stroll with a New Orleans-style brass band to highlight the corridor

Saturday's event was a reminder that there's no better way to get to know a neighborhood than taking a walk with others, enjoying live music, and supporting local businesses.

September 20, 2023

Check it out: Now it’s safer to get on and off the 312 RiverRun from Belmont Avenue

One of the coolest new things on the on-street route is the treatment of Belmont near and over the Chicago River, by the southern trailhead of the north-south path.

September 19, 2023
See all posts