Bills will make roads safer in Illinois

While traffic deaths are declining nationwide, Illinois is falling behind. We are one of only ten states that did not see a decrease last year, and fatalities remain more than 15% higher than in 2019.

These deaths are predictable and preventable, driven largely by reckless behavior such as excessive speeding and impaired driving. Two key pieces of pending legislation, House Bill 4333 and House Bill 4948, would help get Illinois back on track.

HB 4333 would address impaired driving by lowering the state’s alcohol concentration threshold from 0.08% to 0.05%. Research shows impairment begins well before 0.08%, and crash risk rises as blood‑alcohol concentration increases. A 0.05% standard would set clearer expectations for drivers, saving lives and preventing millions of dollars in economic losses each year.

HB 4948 would create an Intelligent Speed Assistance (ISA) Program focused on the small number of high‑risk drivers whose repeated or excessive speeding endangers everyone. ISA technology limits a vehicle’s speed to stop this dangerous behavior before it causes a tragedy. The program creates an alternative to license suspension for this small population of high-risk drivers.

These bills target two leading causes of deadly crashes and would help our state go from a lagging outlier to a leader in preventing roadway deaths. We urge the public to ask their legislators to advance these bills.

Nick Jarmusz

Director of Public Affairs

AAA — The Auto Club Group

Erin Doherty

Regional Executive Director

Mothers Against Drunk Driving

Amy Cohen

Founder and President

Families for Safe Streets