blockclubchicago.org
GARFIELD RIDGE — Chicagoans are raising money for the family of a 54-year-old Garfield Ridge resident killed in a hit-and-run while cycling last week.
Juan Martin Márquez Luna, 54, was riding an e-bike to work in the 5600 block of South Archer Avenue at about 5:15 a.m. Sept. 14 when he was fatally struck by a blue pickup truck, according to police and Bike Lane Uprising, a cycling advocacy group.
The pickup truck also hit a black sedan turning at the intersection of Laramie and Archer avenues moments before, and the driver of the pickup fled the scene, according to police.
Streetsblog Chicago, a nonprofit covering public transit in the city, reported that the driver of the pickup truck, a 2027 Ford F-150, ran through a red light on Archer Avenue before striking Márquez Luna, citing the case’s Illinois Traffic Crash report.
Márquez Luna and the driver of the sedan, a 39-year-old man, were traveling south on Laramie Avenue with a green signal, according to Streetsblog. Police said the hit-and-run is being investigated, but no one had been charged in the incident as of Tuesday afternoon.
Juan Martin Marquez Luna
Márquez Luna was transported to the hospital after the crash in critical condition, police said. He died the following day, according to the Cook County Medical Examiner.
Márquez Luna, a native of Jalisco, Mexico, is survived by his wife, four children and eight grandchildren, according to his obituary. He was a passionate supporter of the Bears, Cubs and Blackhawks, as well as the Mexican football club Chivas de Guadalajara.
“His warmheartedness, sense of humor, and unconditional love left a mark on all of us,” his obituary reads in Spanish.
His daughter, Ilse Márquez, started a GoFundMe campaign to help cover unexpected expenses and provide financial support for Márquez Luna’s wife, who relied on him as the sole provider, according to the fundraiser page. It’s raised more than $12,700 of its $13,000 goal as of Wednesday morning.
“At just 54 years old, we believed we would have many more years with him, and this horrific accident changed everything,” the GoFundMe reads. “The pain of losing him so suddenly has shaken us in every way, and while we are grieving, we are also trying to navigate the difficult reality of the expenses that come with such an unexpected loss.”
Bike Lane Uprising, a Chicago-based grassroots advocacy platform that allows cyclists to document and report bike lane obstructions, will hold a ghost bike vigil 1 p.m. Saturday at the crash site at the intersection of Archer and Laramie avenues.
The memorial gathering will honor Márquez Luna by installing a bicycle painted white where he was struck with the hope that the location will be made safer.
Christina Whitehouse, founder of Bike Lane Uprising, said the vigil was organized at the request of Márquez Luna’s family to draw more attention to the dangers of the intersection and help track down the driver who hit him.
“We’re hopeful that this has an impact on finding who did it and then also pressuring the city to make the streets safer,” Whitehouse said.
Maria Ochoa, 88, was killed in a two-vehicle traffic collision while walking near the same intersection of Laramie and Archer avenues in May 2025, sparking a call for safety improvements.
The roads at the crash site lack infrastructure to protect cyclists Whitehouse said. When city officials added protected bike lanes, left-turn lanes, concrete pedestrian islands, curb extensions and updated bus shelters to dangerous stretches of Archer Avenue in Brighton Park, a few miles northeast of where Márquez Luna was struck, some neighbors organized weekly protests.
The city changed some of the safety upgrades after they’d been completed, including re-adding parking spaces.
The bike lane along Archer Avenue at Kedzie Avenue in Brighton Park on April 6, 2026. Credit: Colin Boyle/Block Club Chicago
“In Chicago, we’re seeing an explosion of more and more people wanting to ride bikes and use it for real transportation as Juan was, and we’re just not seeing the infrastructure being built at the rate that it needs,” Whitehouse said.
Over the past two weeks, two other cyclists in Chicago have been struck by drivers and are in critical condition, according to Bike Lane Uprising. One person was hit in Hyde Park around South Lake Park Avenue and 51st Street and the other was struck Saturday near Clark and LaSalle in River North; family members of that cyclist have also launched a GoFundMe to cover his medical costs.
An 8-year-old boy, Jad Debiy, died Thursday after being hit by a vehicle while riding a motorized scooter on 92nd Place in suburban Bridgeview, the Tribune reported.
“It’s been a particularly brutal week for Chicago bicyclists,” Whitehouse said.
Márquez Luna’s family members and elected officials including Illinois Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias and Ald. Daniel La Spata (1st) are expected to attend a Thursday event to celebrate Bike Lanes Uprising’s 9th anniversary at the Specialized cycling store in Fulton Market, 925 W. Lake St., Whitehouse said.
The event will give Chicago cyclists an opportunity to question officials on their plans for improving bike safety in the city, Whitehouse said. Cyclists in Chicago vote at disproportionately high rates, because their “lives depend on it,” she said.
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