River Forest Village President Cathy Adduci signed an executive order Dec. 29 that places restrictions on intercity buses, specifically those coming to the village to drop off migrants on their way to Chicago.
The order is in response to increased examples of buses dropping off passengers along suburban transit lines without notice and follows precedent set by other Illinois cities, including neighboring Oak Park.
The order mandates that buses intending to drop off passengers in River Forest provide notice and perform drop-offs within certain time frames. The order also allows the police department to issue citations and impound vehicles for violating the order.
The order forces any intercity buses coming into the village with one-way passengers and dropping them off to apply for a permit from the chief of police five days in advance of arrival. The operator of any unscheduled intercity bus must make application for an approval to arrive and load/unload passengers in the village on the appropriate form made available by the chief of police.
All applications must include the proposed passenger list and the operator will be required to perform background checks on each passenger over the age of 18 and will provide copies to the chief of police as part of the application. Each application for an unscheduled intercity bus drop-off must include an order authorizing the drop-off executed by the head of the public body originating the transfer of such passengers.
The ordinance also provides for a fine of $750 per passenger to the bus companies involved and their personnel and possible seizure and impoundment of the buses, if the new rules are not followed.
In addition to any fees or fines, any unscheduled intercity bus used in violation of the order shall be subject to immediate seizure and impoundment. The owner of record of said bus shall be liable for any and all towing, storage and administrative fees associated with the towing and storage of the bus.
