Logan Square multi-vehicle and bike crash

What a bummer.  I suppose it is at least progress that they didn't call this an "accident."

But set your stopwatches and get ready for the comments by the mouth-frothing bike haters who won't actually read and/or comprehend the sequence of events...

http://www.dnainfo.com/chicago/20151218/logan-square/police-officer...

A squad car with its lights and sirens activated was headed north along Sacramento Avenue when a second vehicle T-boned the police car at the intersection of Logan Boulevard about 7:30 a.m., Chicago Police said.

The impact of the collision forced the squad car to hit a 27-year-old man on a bike who was riding southbound on Sacramento, according to Officer Janel Sedevic, a Chicago police spokeswoman.

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Permalink Reply by David Altenburg on December 18, 2015 at 10:57am

My wife saw the wreckage - the cars looked pretty bad. Praying for the cyclist and the cop. 

It's really frustrating how little attention Chicago drivers pay to sirens and lights. Near this very place (on Sacramento, just south of Logan), I was riding my daughter to school last week and an ambulance came from behind with sirens blaring. After I pulled over, a schoolbus driver who had been waiting to turn left onto Sacramento decided to take the opportunity, causing the ambulance to swerve to avoid a crash (a crash that probably would have been very bad for daughter and myself, given the size and trajectory of the vehicles involved). 

The importence of paying attention to sirens is one reason why I don't listen to the radio when I'm driving in the city.

Permalink Reply by Maurice on December 18, 2015 at 1:19pm
In light of recent news, I'd wait for independent confirmation re. sirens and lights. CPD routinely blow reds in non-emergency situations. If sirens and lights were on, then it's easy to prove because their dash cam would've marked the recording.
Permalink Reply by Mike Keating on December 19, 2015 at 3:53am

This is a very good point. The Illinois Tort Immunity Act provides protection to police officers who have their "sirens and lights" engaged and are "responding" to an official call. This leads to a lot of police officers claiming the sirens and lights were on during a call no matter what. Not saying that is what happened in this instance, just that it does happen. 

Permalink Reply by Tom A.K. on December 18, 2015 at 8:24pm
http://chicagoist.com/2015/12/18/three-vehicle_crash_in_logan_squar...

Information suggests that a 54-year-old male driver, going west on Logan Boulevard, T-boned a squad car going north on Sacramento, pushing it into a 27-year-old cyclist going south on Sacramento.

The boulevards are wide here and drivers recklessly travel at highway speeds most of the time.
Permalink Reply by mweerd on December 21, 2015 at 9:43am

Wanted to add to this. I came out the other day minutes after this accident happened and saw the poor cyclist writhing in pain on the median. I hope he's ok. From where the cars hit he was thrown quite a ways. People who witnessed the whole thing were stunned to see him moving at all. Two things struck me:

Cops fly through intersections around here (Sacramento and Logan) like madmen. I don't think this played a part - a lady told me this was a motorist speeding to make a light - but anyone who lives in Logan Square can probably attest to the insane speeds cops can reach when the lights are flashing. The day after this happened I saw cop blow a traffic light without even lighting up just cause he didn't want to wait at the light.

I'd like to know someday if the cyclist is ok and what happened. I think as bicyclists in this dangerous city we need to be aware of the matrix of dangers presented to us at any given moment. Sometimes I think it's easy to focus on one event - a car that nearly cut me off - getting through a yellow light - etc - at the expensive of being aware of the multitude of events that could pose a threat. In order to concentrate more fully I pretend sometimes (especially on Milwuakee) that I have a heads-up-display like Terminator.

Stay safe out there.

Permalink Reply by Yasmeen on February 8, 2016 at 2:30pm

Thomas, so glad to hear you are ok and have recovered. Wow. That's a lot to go through. Sorry this happened to you and then you had to deal with the reckless driver being underinsured. Take care and congratulations on your first day back commuting on your bike. 

Permalink Reply by David Altenburg on February 8, 2016 at 2:32pm

Thanks for posting this update. I'm really glad to hear that you're ok. I hope any remainder of your recovery goes well.

Permalink Reply by Tom A.K. on February 8, 2016 at 3:42pm
Thomas, this is just fantastic to hear. All in our cycling community here were hoping for the best when we heard of this incident. Glad to hear you are back in the saddle. Continued wishes for your total recovery.
Permalink Reply by Carter O'Brien on February 9, 2016 at 4:23am

Thomas, you may be the new face of urban resiliency!  That's an incredible story, I'm thrilled you're back up and at it on two wheels, some people never regain their nerve after accidents much less severe.

And a huge *thank you* for the insurance info, I honestly can't remember what the heck I have, but sounds like something more of us should be signing up for.

Best wishes for the remainder of the century to be accident-free for you!

(love your youtube video title "Bike accident on 12/18/15 broke the face, and science fixed it" by the way)

Permalink Reply by Anne Alt on February 9, 2016 at 4:51am

I'm glad to hear that you've made a good recovery and that there was insurance coverage. This is why it's really smart to have good UM/UIM coverage.

Also, for someone who doesn't own a car but occasionally drives, a non-owner policy with UM/UIM coverage may be an option. If you're hit by an uninsured, underinsured or unidentified hit & run driver, it can help a lot. 

Permalink Reply by Jeremy on February 9, 2016 at 9:08am

I once asked State Farm about a named non-owner policy (Allstate doesn't offer it), and it seemed very expensive.  They were basically charging a full auto policy, less the insurance for the actual car.  It was priced for someone who would drive everyday but didn't own a car, instead of pricing for someone who might rent a car a few times a year.

Permalink Reply by Mike Schwab on February 10, 2016 at 5:38am

http://www.betterworldclub.com/green-insurance-services/insurance-s...

They have bicyclist roadside assistance program, and non-owners vehicle insurance in a few states.  Not Illinois, but they do promise to find you non-owners vehicle insurance in your state.

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