Sun-Times: Chicagoland’s 20 Most Dangerous Intersections
While a list of the Illinois Department of Transportation’s most dangerous intersections pinpoints spots all over the greater Chicagoland area, the number one spot is reserved of course, by Chicago.
According to the Chicago Sun-Times, the intersection at Stony Island Avenue at South Chicago Avenue is area’s most prolific producer of vehicle crashes with a total of 63 in 2010.
The newspaper makes the case that this particular intersection is extraordinarily confusing. Most drivers who have experienced this busy multi-roadway confluence would concur.
The article quotes DePaul University transportation scholar, Professor Joseph Schwieterman.
“Some motorists get disoriented since they can’t process all the [external] stimuli,” Schwieterman said.
With multiple approaches, the Skyway towering above and a railroad viaduct causing shifts in lanes, there is no doubt the intersection causes confusion.
The city has tried using red light cameras to improve safety by decreasing red light running and crashes. The city claims red light violations have dropped from 34 per day in 2007 to just 3 per day in 2010, and crashes have dropped by 8% over the same time period.
The city drafted a plan they call The Stony Island Master Plan to deal with this intersection several year ago but has not been able to implement it due to funding issues.
16 of these top 20 dangerous intersections are located in the suburbs. The other three Chicago intersections are #6 Western Avenue & Peterson Avenue with 47 crashes, #8 Kedzie & Belmont with 47 crashes and #13 Roosevelt & Canal with 43 crashes.
Read the full story in the Chicago Sun-Times, “The Chicago area’s 20 most dangerous intersections.”
And here’s the full, top 20 list.
Chicagoland’s Most Dangerous Traffic Intersections
1-Stony Island Avenue & South Chicago Avenue, Chicago (63)
2-La Grange Road at I-80 westbound ramp, Will County (56)
3-Cicero Avenue and 127th Street, Alsip (53)
4-North Avenue at First Avenue, Melrose Park (52)
5-Ogden Avenue at Illinois 59, Naperville (48)
6-Western Avenue at Peterson Avenue, Chicago (47, 1 death)
7-Hunt Club Road at Grand Avenue, Gurnee (47)
8-Kedzie Avenue at Belmont Avenue, Chicago (47)
9-22nd Street at Kingery Highway, Oakbrook Terrace (47)
10-Lincoln Highway at Cicero Avenue, Matteson (46)
11-Waukegan Road at Willow Road, Northfield (45)
12-Bolingbrook Drive at I-55 southbound ramp, Bolingbrook (45)
13-Roosevelt Road at Canal Street, Chicago (43, 1 death)
14-Busse Road at Thorndale Avenue, Bensenville (43)
15-Weber Road at I-55 southbound ramp, Romeoville (43)
16-Lake Street at Barrington Road, Hanover Park (42)
17-Rand Road at Dundee Road, Palatine (42)
18-Algonquin Road at Randall Road, Lake in the Hills (42)
19-159th Street/River Oaks Drive at Torrence Avenue, Calumet City (41)
20-127th Street at Paulina Street, Calumet Park (41)
SOURCE: Chicago Sun-Times via IDOT
Belmont and Kedzie has been crappy for a long time and I got a red light ticket there too. Visibility is poor and they’ve literally done nothing that I’ve noticed. Make the traffic lights bigger and brighter, install new street lighting, repaint the stop lines and cross walks. But no, put a red light camera there and just make money and call that safety. BullshiX!
In Chicago, revenue always takes priority over safety. I’m surprised they haven’t installed smaller, dimmer lights at camera intersections. Who cares if people get hit by cars running the lights, so long as Rahm has more money for his slush funds.
Mike,
I go through that Belmont/Kedize intersection nearly every day. Everything you say is RIGHT ON! That’s a terrible intersection and all your criticism is accurate.
My father in law got nailed there for an RLC ticket because he thought the yellow was longer (suburban traffic lights have longer yellows).
A few months ago, one of the traffic lights was broken for months.
Of course, I see someone routinely working on maintaining the red light camera there, but if the actual traffic light isn’t working, it takes MONTHS to get it fixed.
Pathetic!
In my opinion, it’s almost criminal how the city operates. I read the article and it stated that the most dangerous intersection has a green light interval for 11 seconds. That’s not safety, that’s them hoping for more red light tickets.