Federal Highway Administration
U.S. Department of Transportation
400 Seventh St. SW
Washington, DC 20590

November 15, 2002

Refer to: HOTO-1

Mr. Don Grabowski
Deputy Commissioner
Bureau of Traffic
City of Chicago Department of Transportation
30 North LaSalle Street, Suite 400
Chicago, IL 60602-2570

Dear Mr. Grabowski:

Thank you for your October 23 letter forwarding the final report for your experiment (4-183) with pedestrian countdown signal displays at two intersections in Chicago.

We appreciate receiving your final report documenting good pedestrian understanding and acceptance of the countdowns. As you may be aware, the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) has published in the Federal Register a Notice of Proposed Amendment (NPA) for Revision No. 2 of the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD). That NPA includes the proposed addition of pedestrian countdown displays for optional use, with uniform design and operation when used. The docket for comments on this and the other proposals closed on August 19, 2002, and a final rule for Revision No. 2 is anticipated sometime in mid-2003. Until such time as a final rule is issued, the pedestrian countdown devices in Chicago may remain in place. However, the city of Chicago may be required to modify or remove the pedestrian countdown displays, depending on the details of the final rule.

Thank you again for your interest in improving pedestrian safety and for your efforts in conducting this experimentation. If we can be of further assistance, please contact Mr. Scott Wainwright on 202-366-0857.

Sincerely yours,

/s/ Shelley Row

Shelley J. Row, P.E.
Director, Office of Transportation Operations