Illinois lawmakers and pedestrian advocates are proposing a law that would require drivers to stop, rather than yield, for people in crosswalks – a second attempt after the divisive proposal failed in the assembly last year.
Supporters say the change would create more pedestrian- and bike-friendly roads and would reduce the number of vehicle-pedestrian crashes, which number about 10,000 per year statewide.
Such laws have proven successful for states like Oregon and California, said Margo O’Hara, spokeswoman for the Active Transportation Alliance, which advocates for cyclists and pedestrians.
The change that lawmakers are seeking is seemingly minor. Illinois law currently requires drivers approaching a crosswalk to “yield the right-of-way by slowing down or stopping, if need be.” The new law, proposed by Rep. Luis Arroyo (D-Chicago) and co-sponsored by five other Democrat House members, would require them to “stop and yield.”
“What is the definition of ‘yield’? Is the definition of ‘yield’ just ‘not hitting people’?” she said. “If you ask five people, you’re going to get five different answers.”
But House Bill 43 proved to be highly contentious when it was proposed last year. Arroyo’s first attempt narrowly passed the Illinois House in February 2009 with a 60-54 vote; it cleared the Senate Transportation Committee but stalled in the senate last August.
Kevin Lamm, Rep. Arroyo’s chief of staff, said the bill failed largely because lawmakers were confused about its contents; with so many proposals coming to the floor in a single day, he said, such misunderstandings are common in Springfield.
“Not much is controversial like this,” O’Hara said. “It’s coming down to four or five votes.”
“Yielding is fine,” said Rep. Mark Beaubien Jr. (R-Wauconda), who voted against the bill last year and said he plans to vote against it again. “If I see a pedestrian in the area, I’m going to stop … I have a great deal of faith in the individual person.”
Representatives of the Illinois Police Association did not respond to phone calls by press time, but the Illinois State Police did endorse HB 43 last year.
The Chicago-Naperville-Joliet region averaged 1.23 pedestrian deaths per 1,000 residents in 2008, according to a report by transportation policy organization Transportation for America. That rating placed the region 41st on list ranking cities’ pedestrian safety.
Car crashes killed 172 pedestrians and 18 cyclists in 2007, according to an Active Transportation Alliance report. Another 1,500 were severely injured.
“You end up standing there forever, or you feel like you’re going to get hit by a car,” she said. “The cars just fly by.”
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