Illinois Senate considers study of AI speed cameras on Lake Shore Drive
Chicago is not on the brink of installing AI speed cameras on DuSable Lake Shore Drive, but UIC could study the matter if a state bill becomes law.
Why it matters: Many alarmed Chicagoans reached out last week to the bill's sponsor, state Sen. Sara Feigenholtz, to oppose speed cameras.
But she stresses that the amended legislation simply seeks a study. It wouldn't add cameras. Yet.
How it works: Unlike fixed cameras, the AI-powered cameras, already in use in the U.K. and Europe, can monitor drivers over time and be used randomly to prevent slowdowns near known sites followed by high speeds.
Backstory: Feigenholtz, whose district includes the lakefront from Montrose to Oak Street, got interested in the issue when Gold Cost residents shared concerns about crashes, especially near North Avenue and the Drive.
"You wouldn't believe the videos and photos they showed me," she tells Axios. "It's like a horror movie."
This added to data from 2019 to 2024 showing 61.5% of the road fatalities in her district happened on the Drive.
Between the lines: The recent panic Feigenholtz heard from residents was likely fueled by the reality that few consistently obey the Drive's 40mph speed limit.
Some even emailed her to suggest "increasing the limit to 55," she says.
Still, Feigenholtz believes any eventual cameras would be less about punishment and fees than deterrence, noting that, "studies show 80% of the people do not reoffend after getting a warning."
Zoom in: The potential study would be done by the UIC Urban Transportation Center analyzing:
Multi-year crash data on the Drive
Potential effectiveness of the cameras on improving safety
Possible psychological deterrents to habitual speeding and other non-AI options.
The intrigue: Ald. Daniel La Spata, whose effort to lower the city's speed limit last February was also whittled down to a study, tells Axios, "The study will come back ... showing that it will work and telling her what she already knows. I just hope Sen. Feigenholtz has the courage to act on this and that her colleagues do as well."
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