This law protects bicyclists in the event that the owner of a vehicle opens his or her door in front of the cyclist and causes an accident. It requires that any door that is on the side of a car that traffic passes can only be opened for as long as it takes passengers to enter or exit the vehicle. The owner of a vehicle may not load anything into his or her car on the side of the car that traffic passes by in order to prevent incidents where a bicyclist is unable to pass or collides with the door.
P.A. 79-1069 – from the Chicago Department of Transportation.
As a bicyclist injured in a dooring incident in Chicago, you have legal rights. As Chicago Bike Injury Lawyers we have experience with cases involving serious injuries due to dooring. Contact us for a free case evaluation by an experienced bike crash lawyer.
Additional Resources:
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Door_zone
- http://bicyclesafe.com/
- http://www-nrd.nhtsa.dot.gov/pubs/811156.pdf
- http://gridchicago.com/2012/fatality-tracker-cyclist-avoids-dooring-and-falls-under-wheels-of-semi-truck/