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| [ Introduced ] | [ Enrolled ] | [ Senate Amendment 001 ] |
92_SB0172eng SB172 Engrossed LRB9201414ARsbA 1 AN ACT concerning vehicles. 2 Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, 3 represented in the General Assembly: 4 Section 5. The Illinois Vehicle Code is amended by 5 changing Sections 11-1201 and 11-1201.1 as follows: 6 (625 ILCS 5/11-1201) (from Ch. 95 1/2, par. 11-1201) 7 Sec. 11-1201. Obedience to signal indicating approach of 8 train. 9 (a) Whenever any person driving a vehicle approaches a 10 railroad grade crossing such person must exercise due care 11 and caution as the existence of a railroad track across a 12 highway is a warning of danger, and under any of the 13 circumstances stated in this Section, the driver shall stop 14 within 50 feet but not less than 15 feet from the nearest 15 rail of the railroad and shall not proceed until he can do so 16 safely. The foregoing requirements shall apply when: 17 1. A clearly visible electric or mechanical signal 18 device gives warning of the immediate approach of a 19 railroad train; 20 2. A crossing gate is lowered or a human flagman 21 gives or continues to give a signal of the approach or 22 passage of a railroad train; 23 3. A railroad train approaching a highway crossing 24 emits a warning signal and such railroad train, by reason 25 of its speed or nearness to such crossing, is an 26 immediate hazard; 27 4. An approaching railroad train is plainly visible 28 and is in hazardous proximity to such crossing. 29 5. A railroad train is approaching so closely that 30 an immediate hazard is created. 31 (b) No person shall drive any vehicle through, around or SB172 Engrossed -2- LRB9201414ARsbA 1 under any crossing gate or barrier at a railroad crossing 2 while such gate or barrier is closed or is being opened or 3 closed. 4 (c) The Department, and local authorities with the 5 approval of the Department, are hereby authorized to 6 designate particularly dangerous highway grade crossings of 7 railroads and to erect stop signs thereat. When such stop 8 signs are erected the driver of any vehicle shall stop within 9 50 feet but not less than 15 feet from the nearest rail of 10 such railroad and shall proceed only upon exercising due 11 care. 12 (d) At any railroad grade crossing provided with 13 railroad crossbuck signs, without automatic, electric, or 14 mechanical signal devices, crossing gates, or a human flagman 15 giving a signal of the approach or passage of a train, the 16 driver of a vehicle shall in obedience to the railroad 17 crossbuck sign, yield the right-of-way and slow down to a 18 speed reasonable for the existing conditions and shall stop, 19 if required for safety, at a clearly marked stopped line, or 20 if no stop line, within 50 feet but not less than 15 feet 21 from the nearest rail of the railroad and shall not proceed 22 until he or she can do so safely. If a driver is involved in 23 a collision at a railroad crossing or interferes with the 24 movement of a train after driving past the railroad crossbuck 25 sign, the collision or interference is prima facie evidence 26 of the driver's failure to yield right-of-way. 27 (e) It is unlawful to violateA violation ofany part of 28 this Section. A first conviction of a person for a violation 29 of any part of this Section shall result in a mandatory fine 30 of $250; all subsequent convictions of that person for any 31 violation of any part of this Section shall each result in a 32 mandatory fine of $500or 50 hours of community service. 33 (f) CorporateLocalauthorities of municipal 34 corporations regulating operators ofshall impose fines asSB172 Engrossed -3- LRB9201414ARsbA 1established in subsection (e) forvehicles that fail to obey 2 signals indicating the presence, approach, passage, or 3 departure of a train shall impose fines as established in 4 subsection (e) of this Section. 5 (Source: P.A. 89-186, eff. 1-1-96; 89-658, eff. 1-1-97.) 6 (625 ILCS 5/11-1201.1) 7 Sec. 11-1201.1. Automated Railroad Crossing Enforcement 8 System. 9 (a) For the purposes of this Section, an automated 10 railroad grade crossing enforcement system is a system 11 operated by a law enforcement agency that records a driver's 12 response to automatic, electrical or mechanical signal 13 devices and crossing gates. The system shall be designed to 14 obtain a clear photograph or other recorded image of the 15 vehicle, vehicle operator and the vehicle registration plate 16 of a vehicle in violation of Section 11-1201. The photograph 17 or other recorded image shall also display the time, date and 18 location of the violation. 19 (b) Commencing on January 1, 1996, the Illinois Commerce 20 Commission and the Commuter Rail Board of the Regional 21 Transportation Authority shall, in cooperation with local law 22 enforcement agencies, establish a 5twoyear pilot program 23 within a county with a population of between 750,000 and 24 1,000,000 using an automated railroad grade crossing 25 enforcement system. The Commission shall determine the 3 26 railroad grade crossings within that county that pose the 27 greatest threat to human life based upon the number of 28 accidents and fatalities at the crossings during the past 5 29 years and with approval of the local law enforcement agency 30 equip the crossings with an automated railroad grade crossing 31 enforcement system. 32 (c) For each violation of Section 11-1201 recorded by an 33 automatic railroad grade crossing system, the local law SB172 Engrossed -4- LRB9201414ARsbA 1 enforcement agency having jurisdiction shall issue a written 2 Uniform Traffic Citation of the violation to the registered 3 owner of the vehicle as the alleged violator. The Uniform 4 Traffic Citation shall be delivered to the registered owner 5 of the vehicle, by mail, within 30 days of the violation. 6 The Uniform Traffic Citation shall include the name and 7 address of vehicle owner, the vehicle registration number, 8 the offense charged, the time, date, and location of the 9 violation, the first available court date and that the basis 10 of the citation is the photograph or other recorded image 11 from the automated railroad grade crossing enforcement 12 system. 13 (d) The Uniform Traffic Citation issued to the 14 registered owner of the vehicleviolatorshall be accompanied 15 by a written notice, the contents of which is set forth in 16 subsection (d-1) of this Section, explainingdocument which17explains the violator's rights and obligations andhow the 18 registered owner of the vehicleviolatorcan elect to proceed 19 by either paying the fine or challenging the issuance of the 20 Uniform Traffic Citation. 21 (d-1) The written notice explaining the alleged 22 violator's rights and obligations must include the following 23 text: 24 "You have been served with the accompanying Uniform 25 Traffic Citation and cited with having violated Section 26 11-1201 of the Illinois Vehicle Code. You can elect to 27 proceed by: 28 1. Paying the fine; or 29 2. Challenging the issuance of the Uniform Traffic 30 Citation in court; or 31 3. If you were not the operator of the vehicle at the 32 time of the alleged offense, notifying in writing the 33 local law enforcement agency that issued the Uniform 34 Traffic Citation of the number of the Uniform Traffic SB172 Engrossed -5- LRB9201414ARsbA 1 Citation received and the name and address of the person 2 operating the vehicle at the time of the alleged offense. 3 If you fail to so notify in writing the local law 4 enforcement agency of the name and address of the 5 operator of the vehicle at the time of the alleged 6 offense, you may be presumed to have been the operator of 7 the vehicle at the time of the alleged offense." 8 (d-2) If the registered owner of the vehicle was not the 9 operator of the vehicle at the time of the alleged offense, 10 and if the registered owner notifies the local law 11 enforcement agency having jurisdiction of the name and 12 address of the operator of the vehicle at the time of the 13 alleged offense, the local law enforcement agency having 14 jurisdiction shall then issue a written Uniform Traffic 15 Citation to the person alleged by the registered owner to 16 have been the operator of the vehicle at the time of the 17 alleged offense. If the registered owner fails to notify in 18 writing the local law enforcement agency having jurisdiction 19 of the name and address of the operator of the vehicle at the 20 time of the alleged offense, the registered owner may be 21 presumed to have been the operator of the vehicle at the time 22 of the alleged offense. 23 (e) Evidence. 24 (i) A certificate alleging that a violation of 25 11-1201 occurred, sworn to or affirmed by a duly 26 authorized agency, based on inspection of recorded images 27 produced by an automated railroad crossing enforcement 28 system are evidence of the facts contained in the 29 certificate and are admissible in any proceeding alleging 30 a violation under this Section. 31 (ii) Photographs or recorded images made by an 32 automatic railroad grade crossing enforcement system are 33 confidential and shall be made available only to the 34 alleged violator and governmental and law enforcement SB172 Engrossed -6- LRB9201414ARsbA 1 agencies for purposes of adjudicating a violation of 2 Section 11-1201 of the Illinois Vehicle Code. However, 3 any photograph or other recorded image evidencing a 4 violation of Section 11-1201 shall be admissible in any 5 proceeding resulting from the issuance of the Uniform 6 Traffic Citation when there is reasonable and sufficient 7 proof of the accuracy of the camera or electronic 8 instrument recording the image. There is a rebuttable 9 presumption that the photograph or recorded image is 10 accurate if the camera or electronic recording instrument 11 was in good working order at the beginning and the end of 12 the day of the alleged offense.Photographs or recorded13images made by an automatic railroad grade crossing14enforcement system shall be confidential, and shall be15made available only to the defendant, governmental and16law enforcement agencies for the purposes of adjudicating17a violation of Section 11-1201 of the Illinois Vehicle18Code.19 (f) Rail crossings equipped with an automatic railroad 20 grade crossing enforcement system shall be posted with a sign 21 visible to approaching traffic stating that the railroad 22 grade crossing is being monitored, that citations will be 23 issued, and the amount of the fine for violation. 24 (g) The cost of the installation and maintenance of each 25 automatic railroad grade crossing enforcement system shall be 26 paid from the Grade Crossing Protection Fund if the rail line 27 is not owned by Commuter Rail Board of the Regional 28 Transportation Authority. If the rail line is owned by the 29 Commuter Rail Board of the Regional Transportation Authority, 30 the costs of the installation and maintenance shall be paid 31 from the Regional Transportation Authority's portion of the 32 Public Transportation Fund. 33 (h) The Illinois Commerce Commission shall issue a 34 report to the General Assembly at the conclusion of the 5twoSB172 Engrossed -7- LRB9201414ARsbA 1 year pilot program on the effectiveness of the automatic 2 railroad grade crossing enforcement system. 3 (i) If any part or parts of this Section are held by a 4 court of competent jurisdiction to be unconstitutional, the 5 unconstitutionality shall not affect the validity of the 6 remaining parts of this Section. The General Assembly hereby 7 declares that it would have passed the remaining parts of 8 this Section if it had known that the other part or parts of 9 this Section would be declared unconstitutional. 10 (j) Penalty. 11 (i) A violation of this Section is a petty offense 12 for which a fine of $250 shall be imposed for a first 13 violation, and a fine of $500 shall be imposed for a 14 second or subsequent violation. 15 (ii) For a second or subsequent violation, the 16 Secretary of State may suspend the registration of the 17 motor vehicle for a period of at least 6 months. 18 (Source: P.A. 89-454, eff. 5-17-96; 90-14, eff. 7-1-97.) 19 Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon 20 becoming law.