Have you ever wondered what it’s like to tear through the streets Chicago on a motorcycle, speeding in and out of traffic and enticing police without regard to public safety?
Stunt motorcycle groups continuously mobilize each summer in Chicago, sometimes hundreds of riders, mount their bikes and cruise at dangerous speeds through busy Chicago streets like Lake Shore Drive, Michigan Avenue and numerous other streets across Chicago’s urban areas.
The stunts seem to have one purpose; to get the adrenaline pumping. The main goal for these groups is to lure police officers into chasing them, assuming they wouldn’t be able to keep up or apprehend them all, and in most cases, these thrill-seekers are right.
Reported by the Chicago Tribune, Chicago Police Department Commander, Sean Loughlan, spoke to alderman on the issue. He stated that when these groups begin performing dangerous wheelies and other tricks, “police need to weigh whether starting a pursuit is worth it, even assuming enough officers can respond to slow them down.”
Due to the rising numbers of traffic fatalities and specifically motorcycle fatalities, these antics are worrisome to Chicago officials because it poses another risk to these and fellow riders, drivers and pedestrians on Chicago streets.
Illinois crash statistics
In 2017, 1,080 people lost their lives in a motor vehicle crash, including 158 deaths to motorcyclists. Though the numbers don’t indicate if these daredevil motorcycle groups caused any crashes, nevertheless, the stunts are a cause for concern.
Chicago police are beginning to track the groups with a helicopter to issue traffic tickets, but that has done little to slow down the productions because police are not allowed to pursue a suspect for a standard traffic ticket. Another course of action the police are taking is to monitor the Facebook groups to locate their starting location and then swarm the riders before they can begin their stunt.
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