Illinois

November 2009


Aggressive Driving Laws
None
Sources: National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) and State Highway Safety Offices.
Cell Phone Driving Laws

Hand-
held Ban

Enforce-
ment

All Cell Phone Ban

Text Messaging Ban

Crash
Data
Col-
lected

Pre-
emption
Law

School Bus Drivers

Novice Drivers

Enforce-
ment

All Drivers

School Bus Drivers

Novice Drivers

Enforce-
ment

See footnote   Yes <19 Primary Yes
(eff. 1/10)		 Covered under all driver ban Primary Yes  
Illinois bans the use of cell phones while driving in a school zone or in a highway construction zone.
Sources: American Automobile Association (AAA), Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) and State Highway Safety Offices.
Child Passenger Safety Laws

Child Restraint Required
unless indicated, # refers to Yrs.(Lbs.)

Adult seat belt Permissible
unless indicated, # refers to Yrs.(Lbs.)

Maximum Fine
First Offense
<7 8 - 15; >40 lbs. in rear seat if only lap belt available $50

Sources: Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) and State Highway Safety Offices.

Drug Impaired Driving Laws

Per Se Laws for Drugs
(Forbidding Prohibited Substances in
Driver's Body)

DEC/DRE Programs
(Providing Law Enforcement Training)
Yes Yes

Source: State Highway Safety Offices.

Drunk Driving Laws

Admin. License
Suspension on
First Offense

Limited Driving Privileges During Suspension

Increased Penalties for High Blood Alc. Concen-
tration (BAC)

Open Container Laws

Repeat Offender Laws

Vehicle and License
Plate
Sanctions

Ignition Inter-
locks

Alcohol Exclusion Laws Limiting Treatment Opportunity

3 months After 30 days .16 Yes Yes Impoundment, vehicle confiscation Mandatory for all convictions  
Sources:Ensuring Solutions to Alcohol Problems, Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD), National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and State Highway Safety Offices.
Graduated Driver Licensing (GDL) Laws

Learner Stage

Intermediate Stage

Full Privilege
Min. Age
(Yrs./Mos.)

Required
Supervised
Driving (Hrs.)
(Nighttime hours in parenthesis)

Min. Age
(Yrs./ Mos.)

Min. Duration
(Mos.)

Min. Age
(Yrs./Mos.)

Nighttime Driving Restriction

Passenger Restriction*
(* family members exempt)
15 9 16 Su-Th
10 p.m. - 6 a.m.

Fr-Sa
11 p.m. - 6 a.m.		 First 12 mos. –no more than 1 pass. <20* Night: 18 50 (10)
Passenger: 17
Sources: Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) , American Automobile Association (AAA) and State Highway .
Helmet Laws

Motorcyclists

Bicyclists

All Helmet Law

Partial Law

All Helmet Law Repealed

    1970  
Sources: Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) and State Highway Safety Offices.
Mature Driver Laws

Length of Regular Renewal Cycle (Yrs.)

Provisions for Mature Drivers
4 Renewal every 2 yrs. for >81-86; renewal every yr. for >87; renewal applicants >75 must take a road test
Sources: Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) and State Highway Safety Offices.
Seat Belt Laws

Type of Law

Who is Covered
(Yrs.)

In What Seat

Maximum Fine
First Offense
Primary <18, if driver <19 All $25
>16 Front
Sources: Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) and State Highway Safety Offices.
Segway Laws

Permitted on Sidewalks/Bicycle Paths

Permitted on Roads

Helmets Required

Minimum Age

Pedestrian Laws Apply
Sidewalks Yes     Yes
Sources: Segway LLC and State Highway Safety Offices.
Sobriety Checkpoint Laws

Checkpoints Conducted?

Comments
Yes Several hundred per year
Sources: Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) and State Highway Safety Offices.
Speed Limit Laws

Rural Interstates

Urban Interstates

Other Limited Access Roads

Cars
(mph)

Trucks
(mph)

Cars
(mph)

Trucks
(mph)

Cars
(mph)

Trucks
(mph)
65 55 55 55 65 55

Sources: Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) and State Highway Safety Offices.
Speed and Red Light Cameras

State Law

Violations

Location

Citation Issued to Whom

Liability

Image

Traditional Enforcement Penalties

Records/ Points/ Penalties

Defenses

Privacy
Permitted Speed Various construction zones or IL Toll Authority roads Registered owner Driver Tag and driver Mandatory $250; 20 points $250 or 25 hrs. community service Workers not present in zone at time of citation Images avail. only to alleged driver, gov't agencies for adjudicating offense or statistical or other gov't. purpose; admissable in any proceeding resulting from citation
Red light Various; local ordinance required Registered owner Owner 2 or more images of vehicle and tag $500 max.; 20 points $100; not a moving violation or record offense Occurred as part of funeral procession; driver yielding to emergency vehicle; vehicle or tags stolen Images avail. only to alleged driver, gov't agencies for adjudicating offense or statistical or other gov't. purpose; admissable in any proceeding resulting from citation
Rail crossing Various; cooperation w/ IL DOT and IL Commerce Commis- sion; local ordinance required; pilot program authorized Registered owner Driver (owner if driver not identified by owner) Vehicle, driver and tags $250 max. on 1st offense

$500 on 2nd & subsequent offenses, w/ discretionary 6 month suspension		 $250 or 25 hrs. community service Owner not driver - owner must identify driver Images are confidential and avail. only to the alleged driver; state may use images as part of a safety study
Speed Other Use by local authorities is prohibited. The state may use speed cameras, but only when a law enforcement officer is present and witnesses the event.
Sources: National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL), Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) and State Highway Safety Offices.
Work Zone Speed Limit Laws

Multiple of Original Fine

Violations Affected

Workers Must Be Present
$375 for a 1st. offense, $1,000 for subsequent offenses Speeding No
Sources: National Work Zone Safety Information Clearinghouse and State Highway Safety Offices.