The Chainlink

new pedestrian hazard on State St.

Sidewalks on State St. in the Loop were recently coated with a substance that I assume was intended to seal them and make them easier to clean.  I discovered this afternoon that this coating has an unintended consequence: it's slippery when wet.  

This was the first time I walked on it in the rain, and it was not fun.  I was having trouble, and I'm wearing shoes with semi-sticky soles.  It was almost like walking on icy sidewalks in winter.

During a 2 block walk, I saw 3 people slip and fall.  One was an old lady who slipped and landed hard at the curb ramp - right in front of the bus.  Fortunately the bus was stopped, and the driver saw what was going on and waited as a few of us helped her get up and made sure she was okay.

I'm not sure how many other streets have this stuff, but it's bad news for peds.  Be careful out there.

Views: 705

▶ Reply to This

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Anne Alt on August 13, 2012 at 9:38am

Since Thursday, I've been in contact with folks at Active Transportation Alliance.  They are following up on this problem.


I don't know how heavy the rain will get today, but I'll be walking carefully out there.

Permalink Reply by Anne Alt on September 14, 2012 at 7:04am

I've got an update.  Ron Burke from Active Transportation Alliance has been in touch with the folks at Chicago Loop Alliance, who have gotten a number of complaints about the slickness of this coating when it's wet.  I've also heard from a friend whose 83 year old other took a fall on it.  (Fortunately she was not seriously injured.)

Ron relayed the following message: They re-seal the sidewalks every 6 months.  This was a new type of coating compared to previous applications.  They did not expect it to be this slippery.  Power washing was scheduled (and has presumably happened by now).  If conditions don't improve after power washing, they'll have to try something else to improve traction.  They will NOT use the same coating again.

To those of you walking on State St., post here about your rainy days observations in the coming weeks.  Is it less slippery or just as bad?  Did anyone walk there last night after it started raining?

I'd like to say thanks to Ron Burke for his help in getting answers on this and letting them know how much of a problem this has become.  Hopefully it will be less slippery from now on.

RSS

Groups

© 2008-2016   The Chainlink Community, L.L.C.   Powered by

Disclaimer  |  Report an Issue  |  Terms of Service