Daily Herald opinion: Cameras will enable cost-effective enforcement of parking prohibition at O’Hare

Kudos to the Illinois legislature, whose bi-partisan legislation will make it safer for drivers on westbound I-190 by lessening the number of deadly projectiles that can launch themselves unexpectedly into their path.

Awaiting Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s signature is the O’Hare Driver Safety Act, which should, finally, discourage drivers making airport pickups from parking on the westbound shoulder of I-190 within a half-mile of the terminals. The secret is putting teeth into the laws that prohibit it: Getting caught will result in a ticket and $100 fine; and cameras will be set up to snap photos of scofflaws.

For years, we’ve all seen them — vehicles on the shoulder of I-190 or at the intersection of I-90 and I-294, as their drivers wait for incoming flights to land (some of them parked directly under signs warning it is illegal to stop or stand there). The danger is that those parked cars can shoot out into traffic without warning, startling drivers on the main road and causing crashes.

There are easily accessible alternatives for drivers making airport pickups that don’t endanger the rest of us — so-called cellphone lots where drivers can wait for a call — but not enough scofflaws have been incentivized to use them.

That will change with the introduction of cameras, set up by the Illinois Toll Authority. Much like red-light cameras that are on the job 24/7, these will patrol the shoulders without needing the backup of pricey human officers. As it is, state troopers conduct compliance checks and issue citations and warnings daily, but this, clearly, will be more effective.

As Republican state Rep. and Rosemont Mayor Brad Stephens said, expecting human officers to chase shoulder-parking scofflaws is not the best use of police manpower, and not effective enough to discourage the practice. “We’re waiting for a disaster to happen,” he said.

A solution was found that gives law enforcement the ability to use cameras to enforce parking violations. Without it, enforcement is literally hit and miss.

Stephens spearheaded the bill, but Democratic leaders Speaker Chris Welch of Chicago and Senate President Don Harmon of Oak Park became chief sponsors.

The O’Hare Driver Safety Act, which passed both the Illinois House and Senate, will become effective immediately upon Pritzker’s signature. T he only exception to the parking prohibition is an emergency — and the definition of “emergency” does not include waiting to pick up a passenger.

O'Hare has a free cellphone lot at 560 N. Bessie Coleman Drive, a free Kiss n' Fly location at the Multi-Modal Facility, pickup and drop-off at terminals, plus $3 an hour parking. Learn more at flychicago.com/ohare/tofrom/dropoff.