Section 543.300  Criteria for Tourism Attraction Panels

a)         Number and Order of Freeway Panels

1)         Tourism attraction panels and tourism attraction signs may be installed under the standards of Chapter 2J of the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices for Streets and Highways, 2009 Edition, available from the US Department of Transportation's Federal Highway Administration, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE, Washington DC 20590, (202)366-4000 or http://mutcd.fhwa.dot.gov, no later amendments or editions included.  A tourism attraction panel will be erected within the right-of-way of a freeway for each direction of travel in advance of an interchange after receipt of the tourism attraction signs by the Department.  If additional requests are received for tourism attraction signs and the tourism attraction panel is full, a second tourism attraction panel may be installed.  Space for a second tourism attraction panel will be subject to the installation and priority of service types, as prescribed under 92 Ill. Adm. Code 542, Business Logo Signing Program.  When considering a second tourism attraction panel, the Department will take into consideration the number of other services available at the interchange, the interest expressed by those qualified businesses, and the anticipated future development of the area.  There will only be a maximum of two tourism attraction panels installed for each direction in advance of an interchange.  The maximum number of signs displayed on a tourism attraction panel, whether separate or combined with a business logo panel, will be as required in Section 543.600(a)(2).

2)         Tourism attraction panels will not be erected in advance of any exit-only freeway interchange where motorists cannot easily reenter the freeway and continue in the same direction of travel. 

3)         Tourism attraction panels will not be erected in advance of any freeway interchange where there are four business logo panels in place except where they can be combined as allowed in Section 543.600(a)(2).

4)         Signing for a qualifying tourism attraction will only be allowed at a given interchange where the attraction can be reached without crossing another freeway.

5)         All tourism attraction panels will be ground-mounted. 

b)         Location of Freeway Panels  

1)         Each tourism attraction panel along the freeway will be installed at least 800 feet from other signs and/or the beginning of an exit ramp taper. Each tourism attraction panel along the freeway will also be installed at least 500 feet from the preceding entrance ramp stub.

2)         Tourism attraction panels will not be erected in advance of exit ramps to a previous interchange.

c)         Exit Ramp Panels at Single-Exit Interchanges

1)         The Department will install exit ramp panels along exit ramps at single-exit interchanges in accordance with subsection (c)(2) of this Section.

2)         A tourism attraction that is displayed on a freeway panel shall also be required to be displayed on the exit ramp panel at a single-exit interchange.  Only tourism attractions having signs displayed on freeway panels will have signs displayed on exit ramp panels.

3)         The Department will install a supplemental distance sign below the tourism attraction sign for any tourism attraction over one mile from the exit ramp at single-exit interchanges in Cook, DuPage and Lake Counties, and over two miles in other counties.  Whenever the Department installs a supplemental distance sign on an exit ramp panel, it will also install a supplemental distance sign below the tourism attraction sign of any other tourism attraction that is ½ mile or more from the ramp.  The supplemental sign will indicate the distance to the tourism attraction in half-mile increments for distances up to two miles and in one-mile increments for distances over two miles.

d)         Exit Ramp Panels at Double-Exit Interchanges

Any tourism attraction that has its logo displayed on a freeway panel will not be required to display its logo on an exit ramp panel at a double-exit interchange.  Any tourism attraction that has its logo displayed on a freeway panel at a double-exit interchange that is reconstructed to a single-exit interchange shall be required to have its logo displayed on ramp panels in accordance with subsection (c).

(Source:  Amended at 35 Ill. Reg. 18932, effective November 26, 2011)