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Chicago Skyway Accidents
The Chicago, IL trucking accident attorneys at Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers, LLC can help you pursue a freeway truck accident lawsuit, financial compensation, and justice.
Let our legal team at (888) 424-5757 hold those responsible for the damages accountable for everything you and your loved ones have endured.
Discuss your compensation claim with a Chicago, IL truck accident lawyer who will protect your rights and obtain the compensation you might be entitled to receive.
Chicago Skyway
The Chicago Skyway (Calumet Skyway) is part of the Federal Interstate Highway System. The tollway and bridge were initially constructed in 1958 to provide access over the Calumet River to the steel mills across the Indiana State line.
The 7.8-mile road is called the Chicago Skyway Toll Bridge, starting at the Dan Ryan Expressway heading southeast. The 650-foot long High Bridge rises over the Calumet Harbor, crossing the Calumet River, heading into Chicago's east side.
For decades, the city government operated and maintained the tollway and bridge until a signed lease agreement with the Skyway Concession Company, Inc transferred operations and maintenance responsibilities.
In 2016, a Canadian Pension Funds group purchased the toll road and bridge. More than a hundred million dollars has been spent on Skyway improvements since 2005.
The Tollway and Bridge are part of Interstate 90, incorporating the Dan Ryan Expressway, Kennedy Expressway, and Jane Addams Memorial Tollway.
What Truck Accident Victim Should Know
Thousands of commercial carriers travel through the Chicago metropolitan area daily, driving on interstates, toll roads, and toll bridges. Even a minor accident involving a commercial vehicle can be particularly hazardous due to the cargo or sheer size and weight of an 18-wheeler, semi-tractor-trailer, or commercial vehicle.
Resolving an interstate trucking accident can be complicated. While the trucker is often held legally liable for causing the crash, additional "third-party" defendants might also be at-fault for the accident.
An attorney working on behalf of the victim (plaintiff) can gather evidence proving driver negligence or error. The trucker may have followed too closely, failed to maintain a safe lookout, made an illegal lane change, or did not yield correctly.
The commercial vehicle operator may have been driving while impaired on alcohol, prescription medications, or illegal drugs. The trucker may have been distracted talking or texting on their smartphone, drinking, eating, or talking to passengers.
Multiple additional parties might be partially at fault for causing the crash under the theories of liability.
Some possible additional defendants involving indirect liability could include:
- An interstate trucking company that hired an inexperienced trucker failed to provide additional training and supervision
- The trucker's employer scheduled unrealistic delivery times, causing the trucker to work long hours with few breaks and little sleep, violating Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration "hours of service" regulations
- Trucking maintenance crews failed to maintain safe equipmentby making necessary repairs or replacing worn tires
- Tire and parts manufacturing companies sold the defective equipment
- Road maintenance and construction zone crews failed to maintain a safe environment uncongested highways
The trucker's employer can almost always be held directly liable if they fail to monitor the trucker's logbooks, prevent the trucker's fatigue, conduct extensive background checks before hiring the trucker, and adequately train all drivers to operate, inspect, and maintain their rig.
Chicago Skyway Accidents
Trucking accidents almost always lead to severe injuries and wrongful death. A fully loaded semi-tractor-trailer can weigh 80,000 pounds and more.
The big rig and fully loaded trailer colliding with a passenger vehicle can cause catastrophic damage. Illinois DOT truck accident statistics for 2018 revealed 13,071 crashes, resulting in 122 fatalities and 2235 injuries.
Recent news reports involving Chicago area tollway and bridge accidents posted online include:
Indiana, October 2020 – Indiana State Police closed a portion of Interstate 90 (Indiana toll road) around 10:30 A.M., following a two-vehicle crash that killed a seven-year-old Chicago child. Reports indicate that people were standing outside of their cars to capture a stray dog on the freeway.
According to reports, a Chevrolet Volt traveling in the eastbound center lane was slowing down approaching the accident site when rear-ended by a commercial carrier semi-tractor-trailer traveling too fast to stop in time.
The rear-end collision's forceful impact caused catastrophic results, ejecting a passenger in the vehicle's rear seat. Emergency Medical Technicians (EMTs) transported the passenger vehicle driver and a female passenger to a Gary, Indiana hospital.
A local coroner pronounced the seven-year-old child dead. Debris was scattered on the street. Emergency crews and the state trooper closed the eastbound lanes for about six hours to clean the area.
Illinois/Indiana Border, February 2016 – State troopers closed a portion of the Indiana Toll Road in the early morning hours following a fatal crash at the Indiana/Illinois border. A preliminary investigation revealed that a thirty-year-old Illinois man driving east passed a commercial truck in the middle lane while accelerating and cutting back in front of the semi-tractor-trailer.
After swerving, the Illinois man rear-ended a flatbed tractor-trailer, disabling his car. The driver and truckers pulled over when an argument ensued.
A second Chicago driver in the eastbound lane struck the driver and his vehicle. A coroner pronounced the Illinois man dead at the accident site, citing blunt force trauma as the cause of death.
Illinois, February 2021 – Illinois State Police and local law enforcement, firefighters, and Emergency Medical Technicians (EMTs) responded to the Tuesday evening fatal crash on the Dan Ryan Expressway. The single-vehicle accident occurred on the southbound lane entrapping one driver and two passengers in the vehicle.
A preliminary investigation revealed that the passenger vehicle was speeding before it went airborne, wrapping a portion of the car around a median barrier sign pole.
According to police reports, one person died at the accident site, and another at the University of Chicago Level 1 Trauma Center. A third person suffered severe injuries and was treated at Chicago's St. Bernard Hospital.
Law enforcement kept most lanes closed until the car could be removed and the debris cleared from the street.
Hiring a Truck Accident Injury Attorney to Resolve a Chicago Tollway Compensation Claim
Were you or a loved one injured in a freeway truck crash? Contact our interstate injury lawyers at (888) 424-5757 to schedule a free consultation.
The truck accident attorneys at Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers LLC can advise you on the merits of your case to proceed with filing and resolving a personal injury compensation claim.
Our law firm accepts personal injury cases using signed contingency fee agreements. The arrangement ensures you only pay for our services if we obtain compensation on your behalf.
Anyone who lost a loved one from a preventable death has the right to file a wrongful death lawsuit to recover damages, including medical bills, lost past and future earnings, loss of companionship, funeral costs, pain, and suffering.
All information you and your loved ones share with our personal injury lawyers will remain confidential through an attorney-client relationship. Our law office currently follows CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) guidelines on Covid-19 social distancing to maintain everyone's well-being.
Our practice areas include automobile accidents, workplace injuries, premises liability, medical malpractice, nursing home abuse, product liability, and wrongful death. Our attorneys currently represent injured clients throughout Illinois in Cook County, Dupage County, Lake County, Peoria County, Sangamon County, Will County, Winnebago County, Aurora, Chicago, Joliet, Schaumburg, and Waukegan.