Cyclist Sues City For Unsafe Bike Lane
By Samantha Abernethy in News on Jul 31, 2012 3:20PM
A cyclist is suing the city of Chicago and the Illinois Department of Transportation for negligence after a drain in an Albany Park bike lane caused him to crash.
Fred Steim says a metal sewer drain with grates parallel to the direction of travel was within the marked bike lane.
Steim was traveling westbound on Lawrence Avenue when he crashed in the 4700 block in August.
The metal sewer grate was not safe for bicycle travel and posed a known hazard to bicyclists because the grates ran parallel to the direction of bicycle travel, the suit alleges.The city of Chicago “encouraged bicycles to cross over said drain by marking the street as a bicycle lane and bicycle route,” according to the lawsuit
Steim says he sustained serious injuries in the fall.