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CTA bus driver fatally struck Kevin Herrera, 28, in Back of the Yards

5:25 PM CST on February 16, 2023

Kevin Herrera

Tragically, Kevin Herrera, 28, was struck and killed by a CTA bus driver Tuesday afternoon at 47th Street and Ashland Avenue in Back of the Yards. He was the ninth pedestrian fatality this year, and the second person fatally struck at the intersection in less than three years.

According to police, at about 2 p.m. on Tuesday, February 14, Herrera was crossing Ashland Avenue southbound. At this location Ashland is a seven-lane street, and 47th has six lanes.

Aerial view of 47th/Ashland. Image: Google Maps
Aerial view of 47th/Ashland. Image: Google Maps

At that time, "a bus [driver] was traveling westbound on 47th street and passing the intersection of 47th and Ashland," police said. The driver struck Herrera. According to the Chicago Fire Department, the victim was pinned under the vehicle, and air bags were used to life the bus off him.

Herrera, who lived nearby on the 5000 block of South Winchester Avenue, was taken to the University of Chicago Hospitals, where he was pronounced dead, according to the Cook County medical examiner's office.

The bus driver was not cited, police said.

47th/Ashland, looking west. Image: Google Maps
47th/Ashland, looking west. Image: Google Maps

A CTA spokesperson told Streetsblog, "According to a preliminary review of camera footage... a person standing on the sidewalk at the corner fell into the path of the bus." That contradicts the police statement that Herrera was crossing the street when the bus operator hit him. The spokesperson said the agency was still looking into the incident and did not immediately have info on the work status of the driver.

Herrera's sister-in-law Flor Herrera has launched a GoFundMe page to raise money for funeral expenses, who called his death "tragic and very unexpected." She said he loved video games, his dog Layla and his two nieces. "We are devastated by Kevin’s passing and want to give Kevin the memorial he deserves, honor his memory and say our last goodbyes."

Kevin Herrera with his dog Layla.
Kevin Herrera with his dog Layla.

In May 2020, 55-year-old Juan Cabral was crossing Ashland westbound in a crosswalk at 47th Street when a sedan driver turned east from Ashland onto 47th and pulled into the same lane as another car, which then skidded into the crosswalk, striking the pedestrian in the leg. Cabral later died from complications from the injury.

Pedestrian: 9
Bicyclist: 0

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.

2023 Chicago pedestrian fatality cases

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