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Left-turning van driver who failed to yield killed Berta Arroyo Salgado, 73, in West Town

Paulina Street, looking south at Chicago Avenue. Arroyo Salgado was struck in the east crosswalk, at the left side of this image. Image: Google Maps

A van driver making a left turn last Tuesday in West Town failed to yield to Berta Arroyo Salgado, 73, as she crossed the street in a crosswalk, killing the senior.

According to police, on Tuesday, May 10 at about 3:40 p.m. Arroyo Salgado was crossing the east leg of the intersection of Chicago Avenue (800 N.) and Paulina Street (1700 W.) This intersection has stoplights, and it appears she had a walk signal.

The 57-year-old male driver of a 2007 Ford van was heading south on Paulina when he attempted to make an eastbound left turn, striking the pedestrian.

Arroyo Salgado was transported to Stroger Hospital, where she was pronounced dead a half hour later, according to the Cook County medical examiner's office.

The driver was cited for failure to show due care for a pedestrian in the roadway.

Sadly, turning drivers injuring and killing pedestrians in crosswalks by failing to yield is a common phenomenon in Chicago. Here are a few other examples of this phenomenon from this year.

Typically in such cases, if the driver stays at the scene and is sober, they merely receive minor traffic citations, even if they've taken a life.

Fatality Tracker: 2022 Chicago pedestrian and bicyclist deaths on surface streets

Pedestrian: 8
Bicyclist: 3

Note: Streetsblog Chicago’s traffic death numbers represent fatal crashes on Chicago surface streets, based on media reports and/or preliminary Chicago Police Department data released by the Chicago Department of Transportation.

2022 Chicago pedestrian fatality cases

2022 Chicago bike fatality cases

  • On May 4, 2022, a Nissan Versa sedan driver fatally struck Nick Parlingayan, 22, on his bike at Milwaukee and Kilbourn avenues in Irving Park.
  • On April 26, 2022, an allegedly intoxicated hit-and-run Volkswagen Jetta driver struck and killed Paresh Chhatrala, 42, near Madison and Peoria streets in the West Loop.
  • On February 28, 2022, a BMW sedan driver ran a red light at Balbo Drive and DuSable Lake Shore Drive in the Loop, fatally striking Gerardo Marciales, 41, on a Divvy bike.

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