Corroded Sign Falling, Nearly Hitting Two People Prompts CTA Inspection Of Other Signs
CHICAGO (CBS) -- A CTA sign that fell and nearly hit two pedestrians at a major Chicago intersection has prompted the CTA to look at similar signs for possible issues.
Thursday night the sign was coned off and propped up against trash bins.
A tipster told CBS 2 a man was simply leaning against the pole when it toppled over, nearly hitting two senior citizens.
"Thank goodness no one was hurt," said one person who stopped to look at the sign.
"I'm in pretty decent shape, too. Ah yeah, a senior like my mom, somebody that's in their 70s, this is not going to feel very good," said a Brandon Smith, who tried to lift the sign.
He said he guessed it was around 60 or 70 pounds.
A woman checking out the sign estimated its weight to be 75 or 100 pounds.
The CTA bus sign once promoted the routes you could catch on State and Madison.
It's instead what Smith, who works nearby, describes as an unintended advertisement for the kind of decay the elements and neglect can have on city infrastructure.
"Urban decay, just like I told, like at its finest. Infrastructure not being taken care of, but we've got a whole bunch of taxes," he said.
Though the pole is only about six feet tall, the city has had much larger poles -- light poles -- rust out and crash on streets, cars and even people.
For years, CBS 2 Investigator Dave Savini has exposed the dangers of falling light poles finding thousands of complaints of corroded poles caused by winter weather, salt, age and neglect.
CBS 2 spot check three other similar CTA signs along one of Chicago's busiest stretched of State Street.
Two seemed secure, but upon additional pushes and nudges, Rayl Daniels seemed to change her mind.
"If I shook this hard enough, I could actually tip it over," she said.
The CTA plans to look into exactly what happened with the fallen sign and who is responsible.
