Clarification on Lisa Kuivinen Tragedy

I'm trying to process what happened to Lisa as someone who rides that route every day.

Did Lisa get hit trying to merge with traffic just before the construction site or did this happen well before the construction - some folks are saying the semi hit Lisa while she was in the bike lane before the construction site.

All that being said - my heart goes out to their friends and fam.

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Permalink Reply by Tom A.K. on August 17, 2016 at 6:20am
The abc7Chicago report says she was in the bike lane before the construction site.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=JQB3wmQ_BCc

http://my.chicagotribune.com/#section/-1/article/p2p-88119364/

R.I.P. Lisa Kuivinen - Art Institute student (attachment).
Attachments:
Permalink Reply by Yasmeen on August 17, 2016 at 6:56am

Background on Lisa:

CHICAGO — A young bicyclist killed in a River West crash was "a radiant and shining star," friends of the victim said.

Lisa Kuivinen, 20, was riding a bike in the 800 block of North Milwaukee Avenue when the Rolling Meadows native was hit by a truck and killed Tuesday morning. Kuivinen had been an undergraduate student at School of the Art Institute of Chicago, studying in the fine arts program.

Kuivinen had a "smile and laugh that just lit up the room," one friend wrote in a post on Facebook.

Added another: "Lisa was such a wonderful friend and artist. I can't believe Lisa is gone and I'm going to miss their smile and laughter."


Lisa Kuivinen was struck and killed by a semi-truck Tuesday morning. (Photo from Facebook)

Kuivinen, who preferred to use the pronouns "they" and "them," had danced at Fred Astaire Dancing Studio. In a post to Facebook, an employee of the studio said Kuivinen was a "talented, beautiful and passionate dancer."

Lisa "was a star up on that stage. A radiant and shining star," the post said. "We will miss [Kuivinen] so much. There are no words to explain the sorrow and sadness we feel."

Full Story:

https://www.dnainfo.com/chicago/20160817/river-west/lisa-kuivinen-b...

Permalink Reply by David Altenburg on August 17, 2016 at 7:34am

I saw the crash site before it was closed off, and I can confirm that the crash occurred north of Racine, before the construction site. This is where the bike lane is still unobstructed, before bikers merge with vehicles to get through the construction site. I didn't witness the crash, but in the aftermath, the truck was stopped in the bike lane, entirely to the right, and some of the stuff I did see makes me think that it's very unlikely Lisa Kuivinen was outside the bike lane when they were struck.

Permalink Reply by Jim Reho on August 17, 2016 at 7:56am

I'd bet money that the truck was carrying materials for the construction site and just pulled over to the right to park (and block the bike lane, of course) without ever seeing the cyclist.  In my own opinion, if that scenario is correct and given the obvious nature of the bike path and the numerous cyclists in the area, the driver's action in moving to the right when he couldn't see if cyclists were there could easily be deemed reckless.  We'll see what the state's attorneys think.   

Permalink Reply by Anne Alt on August 17, 2016 at 8:30am

It's a plausible scenario. I will be curious to see what further investigation uncovers.

Permalink Reply by Tom A.K. on August 17, 2016 at 8:21am
I'm always amazed with all these quickly built construction projects that they rarely ever have a safety flagman to guide the blindspoted truck driver in safely when they have to make a material delivery to a site project. They used to do that back in the day in this city. I guess safety isn't a priority anymore.
Permalink Reply by Anne Alt on August 17, 2016 at 8:30am

Some contractors do this. Some do not. I have seen it done by contractors on 2 recent Loop projects, especially at rush hour.

It should be a requirement, with fines for failure to do it and something we could report via 311.

Permalink Reply by Skip Montanaro 0mi on August 17, 2016 at 9:16am

Crazy idea, but would city cyclists have standing to sue the construction company to get them to add a flagman?

Permalink Reply by Joe Guzzardo on August 17, 2016 at 5:45pm

Brilliant idea. As a part of the permitting process, the city should require construction companies to provide flag persons when deemed appropriate, with liability coverage to ensure compensation in the event of a worst case scenario.

Permalink Reply by Brendan Kevenides on August 25, 2016 at 3:08am

Having a flagman is required pursuant to the terms of many construction permits issued by the city.

Permalink Reply by mweerd on August 17, 2016 at 9:29am

Thanks for the info. So tragic. So many semi's on Milwaukee these days with all the construction.

Permalink Reply by Tom A.K. on August 17, 2016 at 9:08am
Jorge, how about a meet-up tomorrow night, Thursday, 8-18-16, about 7 pm, gather by the Art Institute (lions) steps and roll out to the site around sunset around 8pm. Bring candles, flowers, art, balloons, etc. And your voice.

How does this idea sound to others in our community?

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