CHICAGO (WLS) — An incident of risky driving near O’Hare International Airport, where drivers pull over on the sides of busy roads for picking up arriving passengers, was expected to be resolved.
However, the ABC7 I-Team has learned an enforcement snafu is putting the brakes on a new law designed to help crack down on the alarming activity.
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Dyana Pisani, who works at O’Hare, has been observing and fretting over this issue for a long time. She mentioned that while driving on I-90, she sees drivers opting to wait for arriving flights by parking in emergency lanes on the side of heavily trafficked roads, despite the existence of a law against it.
“It’s awful, and we’ve seen so many near-misses,” Pisani said.
Over the past few months, the I-Team has been monitoring this behavior and has witnessed a constant line of cars hazardously waiting with their blinkers on to collect passengers arriving in Chicago.
Transportation experts explained the shoulder is intended only for emergency use.
A national study in the journal “Accident Analysis & Prevention” from 2020 looked at driving activity similar to curbside idling. From that research, P.S. Srira, the director of the University of Illinois at Chicago’s Urban Transportation Center, estimates roughly 250 fatalities a year are associated with non-moving vehicles as well as those trying to merge back into traffic. While he is unaware of any deadly accidents around O’Hare due to shoulder idling, he says the future odds are not good.
“We have not had any major issues at least reported because of this parking behavior but it’s only a matter of time,” Srira said. “The more exposure you have the odds are against you and then it becomes a very serious issue.”
This also translates to the need for enforcement, he said.
Pisani said she’s seen plenty of crashes from cars pulling out or pulling over.
“We’ve seen accidents. It’s fender benders, people pulling into traffic,” Pisani said. “You know… we’re moving 55 miles an hour and these idiots just merge in.”
She thought the problem would come to a screeching halt when the O’Hare Driver Safety Act went into effect at the start of the 2025. Despite state troopers patrolling when they can, many lawmakers agreed it wasn’t enough to stop the illegal behavior.
To promote compliance, the new law calls for cameras to be installed and to issue $100 tickets to drivers parked illegally.
State Representative Brad Stephens came up with the legislation, saying, “It’s dangerous… it’s real dangerous. So we got to we got to get this going.”
Stephens, a Republican, is also the mayor of nearby Rosemont. He was encouraged the shoulder idling was finally going to be addressed, but despite the law taking effect, a bureaucratic pothole is stalling the camera installation.
Currently, the camera enforcement will require the coordination of several agencies. Because the Illinois Department of Transportation was not specifically referenced in the initial legislation, a new so-called trailer bill was just introduced to include that department.
Stephens is miffed this wasn’t ironed out before the legislation became law.
“There was plenty of time for everybody to weigh in on this,” Stephens said. “And it just it does seem, you know, a little difficult to understand that. But we’re going to get this done. We’re going to get it through and we’re going to get it implemented.”
The update will also clarify the term “traffic route” to include all routes within a specified half-mile radius around O’Hare, including shoulders near the airport’s eastern entrance and the intersection of Interstates 90 and 294.
In a written responses, the Illinois Tollway told the I-team discussions among the various entities are underway.
Stephens is unsure why the effort to move the camera installation has become so complicated.
“Maybe the agencies are trying to figure out if there’s a revenue split or whatever. But that’s not what the legislation is about,” Stephens said. “The legislation is about installing the cameras and they’re all state agencies… they can figure that out.”
Meanwhile, frustrated motorists say there needs to be clearer signage about a free parking area nearby on airport property called a cell phone lot, where you can wait legally.
The Chicago Department of Aviation, in an email, said it is committed to ensuring the safety of the traveling public and “potential enhancements to cell lot signage are being assessed to improve accessibility and reduce confusion.”
Pisani said a fix can’t come soon enough.
“And if weather, if it’s inclement weather, forget it. It’s a total nightmare and it’s already a bottleneck getting into O’Hare,” Pisani added. “So either go pay your three bucks and park in the main terminal, which does not take much, or go park for free in the cell phone lot. But don’t keep doing what you’re doing on the side of the road.”
Exemptions to the law include emergencies, vehicle malfunctions, law enforcement directions, stolen vehicles and instances where a driver receives a Uniform Traffic Citation.
In a written response, Illinois State Police stated they actively patrol the interstates around O’Hare as much as possible to enforce illegal shoulder parking.
Late on Thursday, Representative Stephens told the I-Team he’s now working with ISP on an amendment that would place this entire camera project into the hands of state police, giving them total authority. He hopes to start that process next week.
Illinois State Police shared the following full statement:
“ISP has no position on the trailer bill, but will be prepared to support implementation of whatever the General Assembly mandates, as with any other statute, in cooperation with relevant agencies. ISP actively patrols the interstates around O’Hare as much as possible with the resources available, and enforces illegal shoulder parking. Additional signage informing motorists parking on the shoulder is prohibited, as well as barriers, have been added to the shoulder. ISP patrols almost 19,000 miles of interstate and state highways all across Illinois, prioritizing drug trafficking, gun trafficking, human trafficking, violent crime, and dangerous driving.”
The Chicago Department of Aviation shared the following full statement:
“The CDA is committed to ensuring the safety of the traveling public and works closely with partner agencies, including the Illinois Tollway, the Chicago Police Department, and the Illinois State Police, to support safe and efficient access to O’Hare International Airport. Unauthorized shoulder parking can create safety hazards and traffic congestion. However, the CDA does not have jurisdiction over highways providing airport access, including I-190, and does not conduct patrols on them. The CDA continuously evaluates opportunities to improve wayfinding for passengers and visitors. Potential enhancements to cell lot signage are being assessed to improve accessibility and reduce confusion. The CDA remains committed to working with the appropriate agencies to support efforts that improve safe access to O’Hare and enhance the overall travel experience.”
The Illinois Tollway shared the following full statement:
The implementation of parking enforcement created by this new law will require coordination with the Illinois State Police, Illinois Department of Transportation, the Chicago Department of Aviation and the Illinois Tollway and these discussions are currently underway.
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