A lawsuit recently filed against the Chicago Transit Authority alleges that one of its bus drivers ran a red light at the intersection of West Lawrence Avenue and West Central Avenue and struck a woman on a bicycle. Our law firm filed the suit on the cyclist's behalf on February 18th.
The crash occurred at around 1:30 p.m. on October 5, 2013. The 22 year old woman was attempting a left turn from Central onto Lawrence when the northbound bus struck her. The heavy impact caused her head to strike and break the bus windshield. She was taken from the scene via ambulance to Advocate Illinois Masonic Medical Center. There she was kept overnight and treated for injuries to her head and pelvis.
An off duty Chicago police officer happened to witness the incident. He said that the southbound cyclist was stopped in the intersection waiting for northbound traffic to clear so she could make a left turn. The Illinois Vehicle Code permits bicyclists to execute left turns in this way, just like a motor vehicle driver. The light controlling northbound traffic turned red, and the bicyclist began her turn. As she turned, the bus driver ran the light and crashed into the cyclist's right side. A video taken from inside the bus demonstrates that the bus did not stop as it came into the intersection. The off duty officer, who had been stopped at the traffic light facing west on Lawrence, stopped the bus driver who seemed, he said, that she was prepared to leave the scene. He also came to the aid of the injured cyclist. The driver was ticketed by police at the scene for failing to obey a traffic control device.
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