Lawmakers, alderpersons demand 'immediate action' from IDOT for Pulaski Road safety on SW Side

CHICAGO (WLS) -- Local politicians are demanding better safety measures on a portion of South Pulaski Road.

A group of 11 state lawmakers and Chicago alderpeople are pleading with the Illinois Department of Transportation to take "immediate action." The group sent a letter to IDOT on Wednesday to lay out their concerns.

Those who live along the Pulaski Road corridor on the city's Southwest Side know just how dangerous driving and walking across the four lanes of traffic can be.

There have been multiple serious and deadly crashes involving pedestrians on the stretch of road on the Southwest Side. The latest crashed happened Monday. A mini-van hit two people on South Pulaski Road near 63rd Street before crashing into a building.

Repairs were still being made Thursday to the real estate office the vehicle plowed into. Rocio Macias witnessed the aftermath.

"My mom, she's a senior too, and she walks all the time on Pulaski too, back and forward, and that broke my heart," Macias said. "Because next time, you don't know who it's going to be."

Macias lives in the area and also works at 23rd Ward Ald. Silvana Tabares' office, located just steps from where the crash happened at 63rd and Pulaski.

Speed feedback signs were installed nearby a few years ago after a student at Richardson middle school was struck by a vehicle.

It is like an expressway in the middle of a residential neighborhood," Tabares said. "They fly by. Speeding is a big issue here."

The speeding and drag racing have gotten so bad that Tabares is among the group of legislators calling on IDOT to reconstruct Pulaski Road from I-55 to 87th Street.

"Pulaski Road is a state road," Tabares said. "It meets the criteria for IDOT to implement these safety measures, like pedestrian islands and corner bumpouts, and we need action now from IDOT to prioritize it."

RELATED | Stretch of Pulaski Road on SW Side poses major safety risk, residents and business owners say

State Representative Angie Guerrero-Cuellar was also among the lawmakers to sign the letter.

"We're having car accidents, we're having pedestrians who can't cross the street" Guerrero-Cuellar said. "We have schools along that route. We have many families and kids who cross those streets. We have a lot of shopping enters on Pulaski, and so people are on foot."

There have been 1,468 crashes on Pulaski Road between I-55 and 71st Street in the last 12 months, according to Chicago Police Department numbers analyzed by the ABC7 Data Team. In the crashes, there were seven fatalities, 21 serious injuries and 135 non-incapacitating injuries.

Three of the seven fatalities have taken place since February of this year. The most recent fatality was Charlie Mills, a former Jones College Prep classroom assistant who was crossing the street March 31 near 64th and Pulaski when he was struck by a hit-and-run driver.

A spokesperson for IDOT Thursday acknowledged receipt of the letter, promising legislators a swift response and saying they welcome the conversation around safety.

"The department received the letter and will be responding as soon as possible," a Thursday statement from IDOT read. "We welcome the conversation about safety and look forward to involving all stakeholders to discuss solutions. This particular section of Pulaski Road is covered under a municipal maintenance agreement with the Chicago Department of Transportation so IDOT will be looking to engage with our partners with the city going forward."