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Jul 24, 2006 6:13 pm US/Central
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City Hopes To Slow Drivers At Dangerous S-Curve
Optical Illusion Designed To Slow Drivers On Lake Shore Drive
by Mike Parker
CHICAGO (CBS) ―
The city has worked for decades to figure out how to get drivers to slow down at the s-curve on Lake Shore Drive. Straightening it out once to make it safer didn't do the trick.
CBS 2's Mike Parker reports a new warning at the Oak Street curve is designed as an optical illusion.
The curve is the most dangerous stretch of Lake Shore Drive. In an average year, there are well over 100 accidents right there. Just ask the doormen who work across the way in the buildings along East Lake Shore Drive.
"There are accidents there all the time," said doorman Benny Varela. "It's a sharp turn, people take it somewhat fast and lose control and fender benders occur there all the time."
"And when it's raining, accidents happen even more—serious stuff like flip-overs," said Tremaine Harris.
The city's transportation department says when there are accidents, there's usually one reason.
"Really there's one big problem at the Oak Street curve on Lake Shore Drive and that's vehicles speeding," said Brian Steele.
The yellow warning signs mounted along the road in recent years telling drivers to take the curve at 25 m.p.h. have had little or no effect. So the city has decided to try something new. In a few weeks, dozens of new pavement stripes will be laid down. At first they'll be 16-feet apart, but as drivers get closer to the curve, the stripes will only be eight feet apart.
"They provide an optical illusion that vehicles are actually speeding up and that causes motorists to slow down, which is of course, the intended effect that we're trying to have at that location," said Steele.
The optical illusion approach to speed control has been tried in other cities, and Chicago traffic experts say it has worked well.
But this is only a temporary fix. The Daley administration is eyeing a possible major redesign and reconstruction of the outer drive at Oak Street, but that may be years away.
(© MMVI, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)