Highway Shields and FWHA Colors

[Rover_0]

I've made a Utah-specific colored shield page, and I've wondered how states get around the FHWA color designations to use a specific color on their state highway signs. Is it something not defined in the MUTCD, or what?

[myosh_tino]

I've made a Utah-specific colored shield page, and I've wondered how states get around the FHWA color designations to use a specific color on their state highway signs. Is it something not defined in the MUTCD, or what?

The design and color of the state route shield is not specified in the MUTCD (via a Standard statement).  Instead the MUTCD provides a Guidance statement that recommends a black-on-white shield on a black background.  While the MUTCD doesn't mention any color restrictions using white-on-red, black-on-yellow or black-on-orange is probably not recommended because of confusion with regulatory, warning or construction signs.

California and its cut-out white-on-green miner's spade shield gets around this by deleting the Guidance statement.  In the case of the cut-out US route shields, California deleted the Standard statement specifying the design of the US route shield replacing it with language that specifies the use of the cut-out shield.