If you travel by motor vehicle in Illinois, there’s always a risk of collision. This type of risk doesn’t disappear if you travel as a pedestrian, especially if you happen to be walking near one of Chicago’s most dangerous intersections. Intersections throughout the country are typically known as high-risk areas for injury when traveling by foot or motor vehicle. However, there are three specific crossroads in Chicago that have exceedingly high rates of collisions resulting in injuries.
Stay alert at East 79th Street & South Stony Island Avenue
This particular crossroad rates as the most dangerous intersection in Chicago. As with any and all intersections, if you are walking near East 79th Street and South Stony Island Avenue, it is imperative that you pay close attention to your surroundings.
Between 2018 and 2020, there were reportedly close to 200 collisions in this stretch of roadway. The crossing at East 9th Street and South Stony Island Avenue isn’t much safer, apparently. In the same time frame, there have been 160 collisions. Several crashes in these dangerous areas resulted in fatalities.
Another dangerous intersection in Chicago
If you have to cross the street at West Garfield Boulevard and South Wentworth Avenue, you’ll want to be especially cautious, as this area of roadway ranks as the third most dangerous intersection in Chicago. Several driving behaviors place pedestrians at risk in these areas.
You might happen to be crossing with a light signaling “Go” for pedestrians when a motorist doesn’t yield the right-of-way, in which case you could wind up getting hit and suffering serious injuries. In fact, failure to yield is one of the most common causes of collision in the three Chicago intersections ranked highest for danger.
Other causal factors in past Chicago intersection collisions
If a driver fails to reduce his or her speed to avoid a collision, the results may be disastrous, especially if you happen to be a nearby pedestrian at the time. In addition to failure to yield a right-of-way, not slowing down to avert collision is another common cause of injury and death at Chicago intersections.
When you travel on foot in Chicago or elsewhere throughout the state, nearby motorists are obligated to adhere to traffic laws and regulations that are in place to keep you safe. Driver negligence is a common cause of collision and serious injury to pedestrians. It’s important to know where to seek support during recovery if you suffer injury in a pedestrian accident.