At the July 17 City Council meeting, Ald. Daniel La Spata introduced three pieces of legislation to the City Council. This policy package is designed to improve pedestrian and traffic safety in the City of Chicago in a way that is safe and equitable for all residents and mobilities. 

“Chicago has been talking about this [Vision Zero] for a decade. We've had an action plan since 2016, and yet, in that whole time, Chicago has never had fewer than 100 traffic fatalities in any given year,” said Ald. Daniel La Spata. “We have the opportunity to change that trajectory and that is what these ordinances and pieces of legislation are about. This is not a utopian goal, it is achievable.”

The first ordinance would lower the default citywide speed limit to 25 miles per hour. Several municipalities across the United States have passed similar legislation, including New York City, Seattle and Boston.

The second ordinance would establish a system for residents to report bike and bus lane obstructions by commercial and personal vehicles. Personal vehicles will receive two warnings before being ticketed while commercial vehicles will be ticketed upon their first infraction. 

Lastly, the resolution calls on the Mayor’s Office and relevant City departments to convene a Working Group to evaluate the City’s current enforcement structure and create a more equitable system of enforcement, including fines and fees reform. 

Today’s Council introductions are the culmination of over a year of policy research, collaboration with community organizations, and public engagement efforts conducted by Ald. La Spata and the Committee on Pedestrian and Traffic Safety. All three pieces are co-sponsored by Ald. Ruth Cruz, Ald. Andre Vasquez Jr., Ald. Timmy Knudsen, Ald. Bennett Lawson, Ald. Matt Martin, and Ald. Leni Manaa-Hoppenworth.

The legislation is supported by Active Transportation Alliance, Equiticity, Sierra Club Illinois, Better Streets Chicago, Metropolitan Planning Council, Chicago Family Biking, and the Illinois Environmental Council.

“Lowering the speed limit in Chicago is essential to support safer mobility for people of all ages and abilities to walk, to roll, and to get where they need to go,” said Amy Rynell, executive director of Active Transportation Alliance. “This seemingly small change, lowering the speed limit by 5 miles an hour, will have an outsized impact on safety and well-being, and will save lives.” 

“Chicago has a speeding problem and it has an illegal parking problem. In some ways, it almost seems innate with our culture, but the grim reality is this: speeding kills,” said Kyle Lucas, co-founder of Better Streets Chicago. “We also know that illegal parking kills. When a driver parks in a bike lane, that forces the cyclist to make a split second maneuver that puts them in direct conflict with traffic. Too many of us standing here today know people who have been injured or have even lost children due to dangerous driving behavior.”

“Over the past several years, a number of us organizations have worked together to envision a city in which all Chicagoans, including families with kids, can feel comfortable biking on our streets,” said Lacey Cordero, a volunteer with Chicago Family Biking. “Many families I talk to currently make the decision not to bike because they do not feel safe and this is in large part due to the high vehicle speeds we experience. We have been conditioned to accept that a car speeding past a bike to make a yellow light is acceptable. But to a 12-year old who just started riding independently, that experience can be stressful and even deadly.”

Following introduction of the ordinance to lower the speed limit, the legislation was sent to the Committee on Committees and Rules. Ald. La Spata looks forward to working with Ald. Michelle Harris, chair of the Committee on Committees and Rules, to move the legislation out of committee and continue working towards its passage.