What states use the blue pentagon shield for county roads?

[froggie]

Florida loves them. They seem to have more of these than current state routes (The county roads here are usually old state roads).

Nah. NJ and NY are probably the two most pentagon-crazy states in the nation.

Agree with New Jersey, disagree with New York.  There are a number of New York counties where use of the blue pentagon is lackluster to almost non-existent.  If not for "CR 57" (a former state route), Onondaga County would lack them entirely, despite having a number of on-paper county routes.  And I use "CR 57" in quotes because Onondaga County considers it CR 91...it's marked 57 only because it's the former NY 57.

Iowa is on par with New Jersey.  One could even argue that Iowa is more "pentagon-crazy", though that's due more to size.

[webny99]

Monroe County, NY is another one where blue pentagons are basically non-existent.

[TheHighwayMan3561]

Monroe County, NY is another one where blue pentagons are basically non-existent.

What about Orleans County?

[DandyDan]

Iowa is on par with New Jersey.  One could even argue that Iowa is more "pentagon-crazy", though that's due more to size.

Iowa could be the most pentagon-crazy state. I have noticed on the official county maps produced by IDOT that not all roads officially designated as county routes get a shield. Most are gravel roads, but there are a few paved roads. Also, Polk County does without pentagons. Granted much of the County is the Des Moines area, but enough is rural that they should, if only to be consistent with the rest of the state.

[kphoger]

Polk County does without pentagons.

Wow, how did I not realize that???  Mind blown.

[webny99]

Monroe County, NY is another one where blue pentagons are basically non-existent.

What about Orleans County?

None that I'm aware of, although for its size, Orleans does have a lot of state routes (in other words, most of the significant roads already have a shield that's not the blue pentagon).

It might even have the highest state-routes-per-capita in the nation, which I'm sure will now be construed as a very positive feature.

[hotdogPi]

It might even have the highest state-routes-per-capita in the nation, which I'm sure will now be construed as a very positive feature.

Esmeralda County, NV?

[kphoger]

It might even have the highest state-routes-per-capita in the nation, which I'm sure will now be construed as a very positive feature.

Esmeralda County, NV?

I count 8 state highways (US/SR) in Esmeralda County.  With a population of 783, that comes to 98 residents per route.

But let's not forget Loving County, TX.  Although I only count 2 state highways (SR/RM) there, its population is only 169.  That works out to 85 residents per route.

Even if I missed one, and there are 9 in Esmeralda County, then Loving County still just barely edges it out.

[webny99]

So I guess Orleans County is right where it belongs on that front too... non-competitive! 

[kphoger]

So I guess Orleans County New York is right where it belongs on that front too... non-competitive! 

[webny99]

So I guess Orleans County New York is right where it belongs on that front too... non-competitive! 

Hamilton County has 5 state routes and a population of ~4,400. That's sub-1000, which isn't mind-blowing, but it's certainly enough to make it competitive - possibly even the winner (looking at you, northern Maine) - among counties east of the Mississippi.

[GaryV]

So I guess Orleans County New York is right where it belongs on that front too... non-competitive! 

Hamilton County has 5 state routes and a population of ~4,400. That's sub-1000, which isn't mind-blowing, but it's certainly enough to make it competitive - possibly even the winner (looking at you, northern Maine) - among counties east of the Mississippi.

Ontonagon County MI has 1 US, 4 state and 1 inter-county route.  With 5720 people (2019), that works out to 950 per route.  Before M-107 was decommissioned, it would have been about 820.

Luce County has 3 state and 4 county.  At 6229 people, that comes out to 889 per route.

[hotdogPi]

I think the winner east of the Mississippi is in Kentucky. Remember that its state route numbers go into the thousands.

[kphoger]

I think the winner east of the Mississippi is in Kentucky. Remember that its state route numbers go into the thousands.

11 of them have a population of less than 8000, so I'd start there if I were you.

[kphoger]

Ooh!  This one will be hard to beat!

King County, TX...

Population:  285
US Routes:  US-82, US-83
Primary State Routes:  TX-222
Secondary State Routes:  FM-193, FM-1168, FM-2569, FM-3416
(am I missing any?)

= 41 residents per route

[webny99]

Aren't secondary state routes cheating? Or at the very least, they're cheating to a similar degree as county routes, which I definitely think should not count.

[kphoger]

Aren't secondary state routes cheating? Or at the very least, they're cheating to a similar degree as county routes, which I definitely think should not count.

How do you handle Kentucky, then?  After all, what would be an FM/RM highway in Texas, or a lettered highway in Missouri, carries a circular shield in Kentucky.  Specifically, which state highways do you expect us to exclude for Kentucky:

- the State Secondary System
- the Rural Secondary System
- the Supplemental Roads

[webny99]

Aren't secondary state routes cheating? Or at the very least, they're cheating to a similar degree as county routes, which I definitely think should not count.

How do you handle Kentucky, then?  After all, what would be an FM/RM highway in Texas, or a lettered highway in Missouri, carries a circular shield in Kentucky.  Specifically, which state highways do you expect us to exclude for Kentucky:

- the State Secondary System
- the Rural Secondary System
- the Supplemental Roads

I'm not sure exactly how a route is distinguished between the State and Rural secondary systems, but I probably wouldn't include anything with four digits or the Supplemental Roads.

[kphoger]

Aren't secondary state routes cheating? Or at the very least, they're cheating to a similar degree as county routes, which I definitely think should not count.

How do you handle Kentucky, then?  After all, what would be an FM/RM highway in Texas, or a lettered highway in Missouri, carries a circular shield in Kentucky.  Specifically, which state highways do you expect us to exclude for Kentucky:

- the State Secondary System
- the Rural Secondary System
- the Supplemental Roads

I'm not sure exactly how a route is distinguished between the State and Rural secondary systems, but I probably wouldn't include anything with four digits or the Supplemental Roads.

Well, then the Elizabethtown Ring Road is out.  And so is the Louisville Outer Loop.  And the Winchester bypass.

[webny99]

OK, I wasn't exactly sure how the four-digit system worked. From what I could tell, it seemed to be mostly the lesser routes (that would be county routes in other states) that got four digits. I guess that's what I get for focusing my brief search on the rural areas.

[thenetwork]

Ohio is sporadic, usually by county and more common in Southern Ohio. 

Summit County (Akron area) at one time had green pentagons on street blades...not sure if they still do.

Northwest New Mexico (Farmington area) goes one step further.  In addition to blue county pentagons, they use red-on-white pentagons for non-county-maintained (NCM) roads.

[Avalanchez71]

Here is an example of a McMinn County, TN use.

https://www.google.com/maps/@35.281158,-84.6072076,3a,41.3y,348.69h,87.17t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sZvPutNaWlw2bNTF30Gm3Qw!2e0!7i13312!8i6656

[hbelkins]

In some cases, the four-digit routes in Kentucky are major routes between county seats. Example: KY 1571. It's the through route between Beattyville and Irvine, as KY 52 is nine miles longer and crosses a mountain.

Rural secondary roads are under a special funding category. The state is obligated to spend a certain amount per county on RS routes. After routine maintenance is factored in, what's left over is generally used for resurfacing. The local governing body in each county (the fiscal court) can make recommendations on which routes it wants paved, but KYTC makes the final decision.

Supplemental roads are basically city streets, frontage roads, or old alignments in most cases. Many of them are not signed with numbered route markers.

[kphoger]

In some cases, the four-digit routes in Kentucky are major routes between county seats. Example: KY 1571. It's the through route between Beattyville and Irvine, as KY 52 is nine miles longer and crosses a mountain.

Rural secondary roads are under a special funding category. The state is obligated to spend a certain amount per county on RS routes. After routine maintenance is factored in, what's left over is generally used for resurfacing. The local governing body in each county (the fiscal court) can make recommendations on which routes it wants paved, but KYTC makes the final decision.

Supplemental roads are basically city streets, frontage roads, or old alignments in most cases. Many of them are not signed with numbered route markers.

That is also a halfway decent response to this post.

[TBKS1]

Lee County, AR



I don't know if this counts but here's Cleveland County, AR



Both of these photos were taken quite a while ago with a pretty crappy camera, sorry for the poor quality