I used to think that there has never been signs using button copy in Canada. Then someone told me that Nova Scotia has used it, but I couldn't find a proof. A friend of mine also told me that Montreal's Champlain Bridge used button copy in the past, but two evenings of searching through the Bibliothèque et Archives nationales du Québec's website were inconclusive. Alps' Roads says that one sign on A-10 was patched with a button copy arrow (http://www.alpsroads.net/roads/qc/a-10/), but it's hard to tell from the picture and the sign had been replaced before I even became a roadgeek.
While driving in Québec City today, I saw what is the only button copy sign I have ever found in Canada in five years of driving. Street View: http://maps.google.ca/?ll=46.78816%2C-71.317942&spn=0.008507%2C0.017252&t=m&z=16&layer=c&cbll=46.788081%2C-71.318971&panoid=l1sXSYd9VFwCvyg6uTTlLQ&cbp=12%2C298.53%2C%2C1%2C-5.54 (for comparison, I found button copy whithin the first ten minutes of driving in New Jersey and Connecticut, and within the first day in Vermont and Massachusetts. Button copy is also relatively easy to find in New York.)
So, is anyone aware of any federal, provincial, municipal or private agency having used button copy signs in Canada? The sign I'm refering to above seems to be on a street under Québec City municipal maintenance, but I can't even be sure who put that sign up, or when it was put up.
Ontario has a little bit of button-copy here and there around some of its railway crossings.
This is one from Toronto (mirrored, because it was shot through a side mirror):
(https://www.aaroads.com/forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.asphaltplanet.ca%2FON%2Fbuttoncopy_aaroads.jpg&hash=5ef9f463805414050c2e2f09fba7745019135c01)
http://www.asphaltplanet.ca/ON/buttoncopy.jpg (http://www.asphaltplanet.ca/ON/buttoncopy.jpg)
The original ER signs that first adorned the QEW appeared to have reflectors in them as well, as is indicated here: http://www.thekingshighway.ca/PHOTOS/qew-42_lg.jpg (http://www.thekingshighway.ca/PHOTOS/qew-42_lg.jpg)
did they use a letter U for the representation of the island? :-D
also: those are glass cateyes in the ER shield, but I have seen one - yellow and blue! - with Grote plastic reflectors. I believe the cateyed one is porcelain, early 1940s, while the Grote one is late 40s or early 50s, and is screen-printed on a painted background.
Quote from: Dr Frankenstein on March 11, 2012, 09:48:10 PM
So, is anyone aware of any federal, provincial, municipal or private agency having used button copy signs in Canada? The sign I'm refering to above seems to be on a street under Québec City municipal maintenance, but I can't even be sure who put that sign up, or when it was put up.
there was, as of April, 2007, one button copy sign in Edmonton on highway 2 heading north into downtown. I am not sure how Canada federalizes its roadbuilding, but my guess is that is a Province of Alberta installation.
Toronto used them on the DVP and Gardner Expressway nack in the day. I wish I got some pictures at the time. Both expressways were and maintained by "Meto" Toronto, and still are as far as I know.
Yes, the Gardiner and DVP are still municipal.
More recently, thanks to Nick Dubanow I found a very old railroad crossing signal on an industrial spur in Thorold that had button copy on its crossbuck and the "2 TRACKS" plaque. That was one day after visiting a place in NY that also had its share of button copy railroad signage. :spin:
Quote from: Dr Frankenstein on January 17, 2013, 05:13:29 PM
Yes, the Gardiner and DVP are still municipal.
More recently, thanks to Nick Dubanow I found a very old railroad crossing signal on an industrial spur in Thorold that had button copy on its crossbuck and the "2 TRACKS" plaque. That was one day after visiting a place in NY that also had its share of button copy railroad signage. :spin:
railroads tend to have their own manufacturing contracts, so usage of button copy on railroad signage is not generally indicative of its use in the surrounding jurisdiction.
also: where in NY? if you know where to look, there are glass-cateye signs in NY!
Canal Street in Rochester.
Found button copy in Calgary along 2 south and north of the city, on and at interchange ramps.
Quote from: Steve on June 07, 2013, 08:58:21 PM
Found button copy in Calgary along 2 south and north of the city, on and at interchange ramps.
Most of the remaining button copies are at 16 Ave NE (TCH 1) interchange, there's even a couple signs where you can tell that "Blackfoot Trail" (the original name for Deerfoot Trail north of 16 Ave) is painted over and replaced with Deerfoot Trail. Most of the other signs along Deerfoot have been replaced within the last year with Clearview.
I remember there being some button copy signs on Trunk 1 in Nova Scotia, in Kingston, near Greenwood AFB. There were adjacent to the rail depot, which thanks to 101, went away, so the signs were likely replaced when the area was redeveloped.
I also remember some in downtown Halifax and Dartmouth, but that was 12 years ago, so they were likely replaced as they were a little long in the tooth at that point.
There were also some old button copy signs near BC 99 and BC 11, the last time I was up there, mainly near the border, but I didn't think about pictures.
Quote from: dmuzika on June 10, 2013, 05:54:07 PM
Most of the remaining button copies are at 16 Ave NE (TCH 1) interchange
Here are a couple of the aforementioned signs, taken today, also notable for the classic old-style Alberta highway shields.
(https://www.aaroads.com/forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi.imgur.com%2FT9usuSP.jpg&hash=a358b342b7eb8d697a9b9b460005039308f72877)
(https://www.aaroads.com/forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi.imgur.com%2FKvOjTPo.jpg&hash=89cc5fcd1550af06e72fee9024a63b202ac4f219)
Quote from: Kniwt on July 10, 2013, 11:47:13 PM
Here are a couple of the aforementioned signs, taken today, also notable for the classic old-style Alberta highway shields.
wow, I totally missed those in Sept. 2011. I had no idea those shields ever were used. were they supposed to represent the Trans-Canada shield, because independent-mount Alberta shields have always had a pointed bottom of one sort or another.
(//www.aaroads.com/shields/img/AB/AB19340281i1.jpg)
(//www.aaroads.com/shields/img/AB/AB19600491i1.jpg)
Quote from: agentsteel53 on August 07, 2013, 01:31:49 PM
Quote from: Kniwt on July 10, 2013, 11:47:13 PM
Here are a couple of the aforementioned signs, taken today, also notable for the classic old-style Alberta highway shields.
wow, I totally missed those in Sept. 2011. I had no idea those shields ever were used. were they supposed to represent the Trans-Canada shield, because independent-mount Alberta shields have always had a pointed bottom of one sort or another.
Alberta can be natoriously inconsistant when it comes to freeway signage, when it comes to sheilds it seems at times just about anything goes. Provincial highways seem to have three common variouations but cities seemed to have their own variations as well. My guess this was Calgary's version of highway shields of the time as these styles are only found in Calgary.
Signs on rural, provincial highways of the similar era would have look more like this:
(https://www.aaroads.com/forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.milebymile.com%2Fphotos%2Fphoto_5263.jpg&hash=e039a824a017ad75db60d6c785bdef7ba24e7990)
very interesting! yes, I've seen a lot of the outline shields which appear to generally be older than the solid shields.
Quote from: agentsteel53 on August 09, 2013, 11:57:11 AM
very interesting! yes, I've seen a lot of the outline shields which appear to generally be older than the solid shields.
This might belong in another thread, but the general timeline of Alberta Highway signs is:
White Outline(https://www.aaroads.com/forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Ffarm2.staticflickr.com%2F1039%2F931931959_5ed62f8a26.jpg&hash=b3b86559c7874e15a22c1e2f642a900f782bf9a3) (http://www.flickr.com/photos/zacharymaillard/931931959/)
AB-2 South Exit 194AB (http://www.flickr.com/photos/zacharymaillard/931931959/) by sagebrushgis (http://www.flickr.com/people/zacharymaillard/), on Flickr
I don't know when they started, but they were used on Alberta highways until the late 1980's/early 1990's
Full Highway Shield(https://www.aaroads.com/forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Ffarm2.staticflickr.com%2F1355%2F1142055515_b77b63e927.jpg&hash=56e71606aa92277a7685cb7c71f3be47876af61d) (http://www.flickr.com/photos/zacharymaillard/1142055515/)
TC-1 East Exit 161A (http://www.flickr.com/photos/zacharymaillard/1142055515/) by sagebrushgis (http://www.flickr.com/people/zacharymaillard/), on Flickr
Started being used in the 1990's for the majority of replacement highway signs or new interchanges.
Combo Highway Shield/Cutout(https://www.aaroads.com/forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Ffarm2.staticflickr.com%2F1403%2F1153008613_c86c4ffcdd.jpg&hash=adec2570c483457d08e3b46c98d2a2360cefde2e) (http://www.flickr.com/photos/zacharymaillard/1153008613/)
AB-3 West at AB-3A/AB-23 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/zacharymaillard/1153008613/) by sagebrushgis (http://www.flickr.com/people/zacharymaillard/), on Flickr
Combination of highway shield and cutout. Not very prevalent on provincial highways, I can only think of their existence at 3 rural interchanges and they were all constructed around the same time in the mid/late 1990's. However they are very prevalent in Calgary and have been used for much longer. Calgary has phased them out in favor of the more common (and IMO boring) cutout.
Outline Cutout(https://www.aaroads.com/forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Ffarm2.staticflickr.com%2F1130%2F931935173_af43db6a2b.jpg&hash=2b2b5e94acc4aef1adffad4bd47a9ae0b0ca8e7f) (http://www.flickr.com/photos/zacharymaillard/931935173/)
AB-2 South Exit 194B (http://www.flickr.com/photos/zacharymaillard/931935173/) by sagebrushgis (http://www.flickr.com/people/zacharymaillard/), on Flickr
Currently being used, started in the last few years.
[Note: I am not 'sagebrushgis', I am merely referencing their photos on Flikr.]