Dozens of drivers fell victim in June to a massive rectangle of road that was simply missing.
A pothole — approximately eight feet by three feet — left more than two dozen cars stranded with flat tires for several hours on June 30 on the Tri-State Tollway. Two left lanes on the tollway were closed for maintenance for several hours.
“It was crazy,” Liz Benson said. “It almost looked like a piece of cake was taken out of the pan and taken out. And we just went through the cake. It was a really hard hit.”
The damage to Benson’s vehicle was extensive, she said.
“I had both of my tires blown out. I had to get towed to an autobody shop and then go to the dealership where they told me I had more damage,” Benson explained. “I had a broken strut and wheel, which turned out to be $3,500 worth of damage.”
Illinois State Police Jun 30Massive pothole on Tri-State Tollway damages dozens of vehicles, causes major delays
Chicago Traffic Jun 30WATCH: Massive pothole shuts down I-294, strands dozens of drivers
As instructed, Benson submitted a claim to the Illinois Tollway for reimbursement for her expenses, but she was denied.
The Tollway said a pothole is a “naturally occurring hazard” and it was not aware of the pothole when Benson hit it. Once officials were notified, they had crews out to fix it. Therefore, Benson isn’t eligible for compensation.
“I felt fortunate I made it through it and got to the side safely,” she said. “Then to be told too bad, so sad, doesn’t seem fair.”
NBC 5 reached out to officials at the Tollway to follow up on this. Here’s the response:
The Illinois Tollway prioritizes safety and works to perform roadway repairs immediately as needed. In the case of the referenced roadway damage on I-294, Illinois Tollway immediately blocked lanes and repaired the damaged pavement once it was reported. Drivers are eligible for potential compensation only in circumstances when the Tollway has been made aware of a defect, had a reasonable opportunity to correct it and the defect continued to impact drivers. Tollway was not aware of the roadway damage and worked immediately to correct it, therefore, it is not a circumstance where individuals would be eligible for potential compensation.
“It just doesn’t seem fair,” Benson added. “It wasn’t a pothole, it wasn’t a naturally occurring event.”
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