An early Sunday crash on the Eisenhower Expressway left one person dead and turned a key western suburb stretch of the inbound I-290 into a traffic nightmare. The multi-vehicle collision happened in the pre-dawn hours near 1st Avenue, which sits on the border between Maywood and Forest Park. Emergency crews shut down multiple lanes while Illinois State Police troopers worked the scene, triggering detours and heavy delays for the morning commute. Authorities have not yet released the victim’s name or additional identifying details as the investigation continues.
According to CBS Chicago, state police said troopers were called to the inbound Eisenhower at 1st Avenue at 2:16 a.m. and found three vehicles involved in the wreck. The agency reported that the left three lanes on the eastbound side of I-290 were shut down while crews cleared the scene, with all lanes reopening by 7:02 a.m. Investigators remained on site into early Sunday afternoon, and officials had not released further information about how the crash unfolded.
As CBS Chicago notes, the closures and cleanup from the three-vehicle collision fed into heavy delays across Chicago’s western suburbs during the morning rush.
Why this stretch is risky
The I-290 corridor around 1st Avenue has been flagged for years as one of the more trouble-prone sections of the Eisenhower. A Phase I crash analysis for I-290 found that the focused study area posted some of the highest crash rates in the region and that a disproportionate share of the most serious collisions occur overnight. The report pointed to narrow shoulders, short weaving distances, and inconsistent ramp patterns as recurring contributors to crashes along the corridor. The I-290 crash analysis details the data and outlines possible safety countermeasures.
Commuter impact and next steps
With lanes blocked for several hours, commuters were forced off the eastbound ramps and onto local streets while crews worked to clear the wreckage. The resulting backups stretched well into the morning commute through the western suburbs. Authorities say the investigation is ongoing, and any new information released by Illinois State Police or local agencies will be reported as it becomes available.
