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Do These Arrows Mean Speed Bumps Are Coming to Lower Lower Wacker?

 Do these arrows mean speed bumps are coming to Lower Lower Wacker Drive? 
Lower Lower Wacker Street Markings
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LAKESHORE EAST — All signs point to new speed bumps coming to deter illegal street races on the lowest level of Wacker Drive.

New markings on Lower Lower Wacker Drive indicate where the city might install speed bumps in what would be its latest effort to slow weekend races on the street. The markings — two arrows pointing at each other — have appeared on the lowest level of Wacker between Columbus Drive and Stetson Avenue, and just east of Columbus closer to the city's Downtown auto pound.


The markings just east of Columbus. [DNAinfo/David Matthews]

The markings arrived just weeks after the city installed new stop signs nearby in an attempt to curb a practice that has drawn ire from neighbors for years. Chicago police told neighbors in May that authorities including Ald. Brendan Reilly (42nd) and the Chicago Department of Transportation were considering new speed bumps to quell the street races, which neighbors say keeps them up on weekend nights and leaves them worried someone will be hurt.

Dave Matthews wonders what else would be in the space between:

Police on Thursday deferred questions to the transportation department, which did not confirm or deny the markings are for new speed bumps.

"On June 25th, CDOT installed stop signs on Lower Lower Wacker at Columbus" transportation spokesman Michael Claffey said in a statement. "In conjunction with [police] and the alderman’s office, we are continuing to explore what additional steps are warranted."

Reilly did not return a message seeking comment.

Richard Ward, president of the New Eastside Association of Residents group, saw the markings earlier this week and also believes they could be for new speed bumps. Though the bumps would surely deter speeding, they may not completely solve the real issue neighbors have with the races: their noise.

Drivers "can do doughnuts in between the speed bumps and [still] cause a tremendous amount of noise," he said. 

The markings are on the lowest level of Wacker Drive, which has far less traffic than the streets two levels above.

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