Active Transportation Alliance is celebrating a big legislative win that will make our streets safer by reigning in reckless drivers.
A bill that passed the Illinois House and Senate lays the groundwork for use of Intelligent Speed Assistance (ISA) technology, which uses GPS and onboard sensors to prevent the most dangerous drivers from exceeding posted speed limits.
Research shows that a small number of “super speeders” are responsible for a disproportionately large share of deadly crashes. These drivers are several times more likely than typical motorists to be involved in deadly collisions, and traditional enforcement—such as license suspension—has proven largely ineffective. Nationally, 75 percent of drivers with a suspended license continue to drive.
Stop Super Speeders legislation (HB 4948) passed the Senate Transportation Committee unanimously (18-0) after previously passing the full Illinois House with a 77-24 vote. Safe streets advocates cheered as the bill cleared its final hurdle on Wednesday, passing the full Senate by a super-majority. The bill now awaits action from Governor JB Pritzker.
THANKS TO ALL WHO HELPED PASS THE LEGISLATION
We are enormously grateful to the many House and Senate members who voted in support of the bill, and especially to the bill’s sponsors, Representative Martha Deuter of the 45th District and Senator Julie Morrison of the 29th District, who worked diligently to craft and pass this meaningful legislation.
We extend a special thanks to our supporters who took action in recent months by filing witness slips and contacting their legislators, and to Rudy Faust — a crash survivor and Ride Illinois board member — for his work in developing the policy.
USE OF INTELLIGENT SPEED ASSISTANCE (ISA) IS SPREADING
To date, a half dozen states have passed a Stop Super Speeders bill, and fourteen other states have bills progressing through their state legislatures this session.
Just like every other state in the union, speeding is a deadly AND widespread problem in Illinois. Indeed, the threat of speeding drivers is a daily reality for Illinoisans, impacting their safety, well-being, and quality of life.
- 303,913 crashes occurred on Illinois roads in 2024. Of those crashes, speed accounted for 31.1 percent of them. Speed accounted for 45.3 percent of deadly crashes and accounted for 35.2 percent of crashes causing injuries.
- Traffic crashes in Illinois are estimated to cost about $8 billion annually.
- In the City of Chicago, 70 percent of fatal crashes involve speeding.
Here’s how ISA works:
- Location-based speed recognition prevents vehicles from exceeding the posted speed limit
- Ensures compliance once the speed limit or a pre-set buffer, determined by the state, is reached, and the accelerator becomes unresponsive
- A temporary speed allowance button allows brief acceleration in specific emergency situations (e.g., avoiding a crash)
- Drivers are responsible for the cost. Low-income drivers may qualify for assistance.
- Only collects necessary data that supports key functions such as confirming compliance, evaluating program performance, as well as improving system accuracy and effectiveness
- Allows drivers to meet their daily needs without accumulating additional speed-related points or convictions