Bicyclists’ rights advocates felt optimistic in April when the Illinois senate passed the Bicycle Safety Restoration Act by a vote of 54 to 0. But last week the measure died in the Illinois house’s judiciary committee, which deadlocked on the bill and prevented it from moving forward.
Best of Chicago voting is live now. Vote for your favorites »
Illinois bicyclists haven’t had liability protection since 1998, when the state supreme court ruled against Jon Boub, who was severely injured when his bike wheel got stuck in the planks of a Du Page County bridge that was being repaired (a case I wrote about here on June 19 and November 20, 1998, and on March 30, 2001). A bicyclist injured by a road hazard–unlike a motorist injured by the same hazard–now can’t sue the city or town that’s responsible.
“It’s a shame,” says Ed Barsotti, LIB’s director. “Across the state–on the Grand Illinois Trail, for example–local government agencies have shelved bike-signage projects and other road improvements because they lose their immunity if they take steps to accommodate cyclists.”
