Oak Lawn Bicycle Accident Attorneys

The Oak Lawn Attorneys of Zneimer & Zneimer P.C. represent bicycle accident victims in obtaining financial compensation for damages and losses incurred. As stated on Village Website, Oak Lawn is “active in planning and promoting bicycling throughout the community.” However, when comparing the village’s bike planning and infrastructure with efforts in other Chicago suburbs, we do hope to see further improvements made in the future, particularly given Oak Lawn’s close proximity to the Calumet-Saganashkee (Cal-Sag) Trail. By doing so, Oak Lawn can reduce bike accidents and injuries, as well as enhance the overall safety of persons that travel via bicycle in the village.

Although focused more on economic development and improving pedestrian safety, a notable effort in Oak Lawn is the village’s March 2014 announcement of adoption of the 95th Street Corridor Plan. The Plan, based upon a corridor study of the ½ mile area between Harlem Avenue to the west and Pulaski Road to the east, consists of six primary components: (1) Transportation; (2) Streetscape; (3) Site Development Concepts; (4) Design Guidelines; (5) Zoning/ Land Use; and (6) Market Development Goals. According to Plan Documents:

As Oak Lawn continues to plan for future growth, corridor infrastructure is charged with the responsibilities to do the same. Along 95th Street, exciting initiatives are taking place, including commercial growth along the corridor and downtown enhancements within the Village’s Town Center. Yet corridor appearances and pedestrian safety can and should be improved to promote Oak Lawn as a quality destination within the south suburbs. This effort focuses on opportunities to promote pedestrian safety, an improved multi-modal transportation system, and community identity within the Village’s Town Center.

In addition to the 95th Street study, current and past planning efforts in Oak Lawn include the following Corridor Studies:

• Harlem Avenue Corridor Study
  • Study Area: Harlem Avenue from 63rd Street on the north to I-80 on the south. It runs through the following communities: Bedford Park, Bridgeview, Burbank, Chicago Ridge, Oak Lawn, Orland Park, Palos Heights, Palos Hills, Tinley Park, and Worth, as well as a portion of the Forest Preserve District of Cook County.
  • Purpose/Goal: Develop a comprehensive corridor approach that unites the corridor, its activities and character to make it a more highly-functioning transportation corridor and activity center for the southwest suburbs. The plan complements, not supersedes, existing plans of corridor communities.
• Cicero Avenue Corridor Study
  • Study Area: The corridor originates at Midway Airport in Chicago and has frontage in Bedford Park, Burbank, Hometown, Oak Lawn, and Alsip, in addition to five southwest community areas in Chicago.
  • Purpose/Goal: Address mobility and accessibility through a comprehensive transportation and transit analysis and recommend strategies for economic revitalization along the corridor and develop a detailed implementation plan.
• Ridgeland Avenue Corridor Study
  • Study Area: Ridgeland Avenue between 79th Street and 135th Street.
  • Purpose/Goal: Outline recommendations for a multi-modal transportation system that ensures the safe and efficient movement of people while supporting the local residents and economy.

*Note: Click on the headings for each individual study to access more information.

In addition, while Oak Lawn does regulate the use and operation of bicycles, as set forth within its Village Code, here too, there is much room for improvement. It is a well-known fact that implementing more stringent bicycling ordinances, as well as incorporating harsher penalties, and ensuring that such regulations are adequately enforced by community officials, is an important component to improving safety, and can greatly contribute to the reduction of bicycle accident injuries and fatalities.

If you or a loved one were involved in an incident while biking in Oak Lawn, or a surrounding area in Cook County, it is important to understand your legal rights and remedies, as well as entitlement to financial compensation. To schedule your free personal injury case evaluation with the Bicycle Accident Attorneys of Zneimer & Zneimer P.C., contact us by calling 773-516-4100, or online, by using the box provided to the upper-left corner of this page.