After losing 170 people to traffic deaths in 2021, officials are exploring new safety elements— including one configuration that's recently been installed in 18 locations and is already triggering confusion and online sniping.

What's happening: Called "Left turn traffic calming," yellow reflective rubber posts and speed bumps are used to make drivers slow down and properly execute left-hand turns in intersections prone to accidents.

• The configuration has been installed at more than a dozen intersections in Belmont Cragin, Humboldt Park, Auburn Gresham and Lakeview.

Why it matters: Left turns were involved in 40% of crashes that led to serious injury or death from 2017 to 2021, according to city data.

• Data from a downtown pilot of the program in 2019 showed that motorists began yielding to pedestrians more often after installation.
• David Smith, the complete streets director at the Chicago Department of Transportation, tells Axios that the new installations could easily prevent dozens of crashes this year.

What they're saying: "At the intersections where we installed these in a downtown pilot, we saw basically a 25% reduction in crashes," Smith says.

The other side: Locals on neighborhood site Next Door have complained about installations on Ashland being confusing, getting damaged and slowing traffic.

• Others have testily responded that slowing down left turns is the whole point.

Between the lines: Smith says drivers should use the configuration to guide them into slower, more thoughtful left turns that look more like 90-degree angles than arcs.

• If you hit a speed bump or the rubber posts, you've driven in the wrong place.

What's next: CDOT says they'll continue to collect data on the program to guide expansion.

Still confused?: Here's a video of Monica using the infrastructure.

👋 Hi, it's Justin! Portillo's stopped taking cash in the drive-thru this week to speed up the line and keep its cashiers safer from being robbed or threatened on the job.

What's happening: In the first installment of Test Drive, our new feature reviewing life experiences around Chicago, we're reviewing the new Portillo's drive-thru.

Backstory: I've always believed the drive-thru at the Portillo's in River North defies physics. Hundreds — if not thousands — of cars line up daily in a repurposed, narrow alley for hot dogs and cheesy beef croissants.

• And most of the time, their efficiency blows my mind!

State of play: I was excited to see whether the new cashless system would make it even better — unfortunately, it made it worse.

• The whole experience took 18 minutes.

The intrigue: Most of that time was just waiting on Clark Street to pull into the actual drive-thru after one customer (who apparently didn't get the "cashless" memo) decided to leave, forcing others to reverse into rush-hour traffic!

• A cashier said this was happening frequently.

The verdict: The rest of the experience was streamlined and efficient, but it's not lost on me that a policy designed to speed things along actually did the opposite.

• This may change as awareness grows, so I'm not worried. I give the experience:
• 🌭🌭🌭 (out of 5)

Read Monica's thought bubble

🐟 Eating one fish from the Great Lakes is equivalent to drinking a month of water with forever chemicals, according to a new report. (NBC 5)

👶 Mayor Lori Lightfoot denied reneging on an offer to give CTU members the same family-leave benefits as other city workers. (Sun-Times)

🏀 The Bulls topped the Pistons, 126-108, in a game played yesterday in Paris — even sans Michael Jordan (ESPN).

🎭 The largest puppet festival in the country is back with shows in over 100 venues through the 29th. (Tribune)

Hey, did you catch the tea Prince Harry spills in his new book, "Spare"?

• Neither did we.

Driving the news: The last time we checked, the hard copy and audio books have more than 1,700 holds at Chicago Public Libraries.

• And we're not alone, as our colleague Shane Savitsky reports.

💼 See who’s hiring around the city.

1. Assistant Account Executive at TPN +.
2. Loyalty Consultant - CLM at Comarch.
3. Director of Payment Operations at Old National Bank.

Want more opportunities? Check out our Job Board.

Hiring? Post a Job.

Former Avec cook Sam Kass rose to fame as White House chef for the Obamas, and later as executive director of the first lady's "Let's Move" initiative.

The latest: He's since launched multiple food projects, including Do Good Chicken, which feeds discarded grocery items to chickens.

• "If one in five chickens Americans ate were Do Good chickens, we would solve retail food waste," Kass tells Axios.
• You can now buy them at Jewel.

What's happening: Although he's a New York dad these days, the former Hyde Park and Logan Square resident shared his ideal Chicago day based "on my younger self."

🌅 Morning activity: "I've watched many a sunrise from the [Promontory] Point after not going to sleep. But at this point in my life I would much prefer sleeping."

🍳 Breakfast: "Valois for the bacon and cheese omelet and biscuit. Larry [the cook] is a dear friend who has watched me grow up since I started going in at 14 or 15. And then when I came back with Barack and then returned with my kids last summer."

🏟 Daytime activity: "I'm a Sox fan through and through. I really don't like the Cubs. But I go to Wrigley, just because there's no better place to watch a game.

• "But when my family hears this they're gonna freak out."

🍗 Lunch: "Harold's on 53rd for a half dark and both sauces."

• "I hadn't eaten Harold's in years, but I went back with my kids this summer and it was as good as ever — so wonderful to taste."

The rest of Sam Kass's Best Day Ever