Early in the morning of November 14, a 27-year-old woman was driving a Volkswagen Passat north on the 3100 block of North Lake Shore Drive in the Lakeview neighborhood, when she struck a tree, a light pole and then a wooden snow fence before coming to rest on or near the Lakefront Trail. She was later cited for negligent driving, operating a motor vehicle without insurance, and driving under the influence of alcohol.
Only two weeks later, last night at about 2:40 a.m., a driver crashed on the 3500 block of North LSD, according to Police News Affairs. That's a mere four blocks north of the previous collision.
The police didn't immediately provide additional info, but Streetsblog reader Mattheis Carly provided photos taken during his morning commute that show the driver crashed through a steel guardrail near an offramp just south of Addison Street. The front end of the vehicle, a gray sedan, appears to have been completely demolished by the impact with the railing, and possibly other factors such as an engine fire.
Crashes like this seem to be more common late at night, when a higher percentage of motorists are intoxicated or fatigued, which reduces the chances of pedestrians and cyclists on the trail being struck. If this collision had happened on summer day, it could have easily resulted in multiple injuries or deaths of path users.
Disturbingly, the collision shows that even heavy-duty guardrails aren't always enough to protect the public from reckless drivers. It's yet more evidence that additional enforcement of the speed limit, and laws against intoxicated and distracted driving, is needed on the drive.
This post is made possible by a grant from Freeman Kevenides, a Chicago, Illinois personal injury law firm representing and advocating for bicyclists, pedestrians and vulnerable road users. The content belongs to Streetsblog Chicago, and Freeman Kevenides Law Firm neither endorses nor exercises editorial control over the content.
