The Clearview thread

[City]

I wonder if there was some road signs tested with Comic Sans MS?

Ladies and Gentlemen, we have an answer to this question, and the answer is yes:



The new questions is... who's responsible? CONNDOT, or the town of Greenwich? (this is on Route 1)

100% town of Greenwich.

If ConnDOT posted that, then surely they have gone crazy. 

[hbelkins]

what does the hourglass mean?

That shape is painted on the pavement on the spot you're not supposed to block in each of the northbound lanes. You can see them the lower left of my photo. They're also visible on Google's satellite view and Bing's "birds eye" view (the sign is visible but not legible in street view).

There's something similar in Virginia Beach.

[agentsteel53]

don't forget the Idiot Sans font used on the "My ancestor blob works here, slow the fudge down" signs in construction zones.  Some new ones just cropped up on I-25 southbound just north of Raton Pass.  Blech. 

(Of course, there is no actual evidence of construction going on, but I see Colorado Highway Patrol vehicles in that stretch all the time ...)

[yakra]

It's still strange how a phone company uses a highway font. But i guess those font weren't made just for BGS's and other highway signs.

A story I remember vaguely from a newsmagazine/newspaper type story I read on the net a long time ago, probably linked from MTR. One of the designers of Clearview (IIRC the article had an interview with him) left the word processor on his computer set to use Clearview as he was designing it. His son then used it to write a paper for school. It came back from the teacher with a remark to the effect of "Something about it just made it easy to read."

[Brandon]

Found a bizarre sign last night on the westbound Reagan Tollway (I-88).  Wish I had had a camera. 
It was an odd mutant with both Highway Gothic and Clearview.  The sign was just west of the ramp merging from the southbound Tri-State Tollway (I-294), and it read:

22nd Street
TO [83]
2 MILES

Now, the "22nd Street" was in highway gothic, as was the "TO" and the route shield.  However, the "2 MILES" was in clearly in Clearview!  I could tell by comparing the shapes of the 2s in "22nd" and "2 MILES".

[florida]

I wonder if there was some road signs tested with Comic Sans MS?

Ladies and Gentlemen, we have an answer to this question, and the answer is yes:



The new questions is... who's responsible? CONNDOT, or the town of Greenwich? (this is on Route 1)

100% town of Greenwich.

If ConnDOT posted that, then surely they have gone crazy. 

Where does one find an hourglass huge enough to block?

[juscuz410]

Ohio Clearview updates:
We've already covered I-77 from New Phila. on north. I-71, I-490 in Cleveland are now sporting CV in addition to the updated Gothic. In Newark, the rebuilt ramp of SR-13 are now sporting CV. I-270/SR-161 interchange in C-bus the "Exit 30" sign is in CV. I-70 East in Belmont County new CV signage went up all over the place. That's all I've got today.

[jdb1234]

Alabama Update:

Earlier Today, I found two overhead signs now sporting Clearview in Birmingham.  These signs were put up earlier this week.

[Alex]

I spotted the first freeway-grade Clearview sign on Interstate 10 west after Exit 10 on October 1:



Just two weekends ago, I found a second new assembly posted on Alabama 181 north at Interstate 10's Exit 38.



Also spotted a handful of Clearview signs along Interstate 75 in Ohio. Most of these were brown attractions signs, but there were a few brand new exit signs with the font as well...

[jdb1234]

Ladies and Gentlemen:

Here is one of the first overhead BGS in Birmingham to sport Clearview:

[Alex]

Ladies and Gentlemen:

Here is one of the first overhead BGS in Birmingham to sport Clearview:

Ugh! Carbon copy (minus the arrow), replaced button copy, and removed overhead lighting fixtures. Triple whammy!

[jdb1234]

Ugh! Carbon copy (minus the arrow), replaced button copy, and removed overhead lighting fixtures. Triple whammy!

Don't worry, it gets even better Eastbound:

[Riverside Frwy]

Ok, the Interstate 96 shields using the Clearview font on first page made my eyes bleed.

[Alex]

There are also a few I-75 shields done in Clearview in the UP. Interstate 96 has several on the drive leading west from its beginning. Interstate 696 eastbound has at least two as well. All look bad...

[Riverside Frwy]

My eyes!!!!!

It should be illegal to have such ugly font.

[agentsteel53]

My eyes!!!!!

It should be illegal to have such ugly font.

and that is why we must preserve old signs   rate of Clearview on old California porcelains: 0.00% and holding steady.

[Mergingtraffic]

There are also a few I-75 shields done in Clearview in the UP. Interstate 96 has several on the drive leading west from its beginning. Interstate 696 eastbound has at least two as well. All look bad...

I'm not a big fan of the new interstate shields with the oversized number ie: I-75 on the left.  It looks too big...almost border to border.  The Loop I-75 looks more proportionate but the clearview ruins it!

[agentsteel53]

I'm not a big fan of the new interstate shields with the oversized number ie: I-75 on the left.  It looks too big...almost border to border.  The Loop I-75 looks more proportionate but the clearview ruins it!

indeed, the large numbers look very silly, but they've been around for a while.  There's a porcelain green sign in Reno that has an I-80 shield like it, and that sign dates back to 1978.

[Riverside Frwy]

Who ever came up with this font should be hanged.

I really don't see the point of it, it's not better than the standard font, it's actually worse.Obviously the transportation agencies must have all gone blind by the font's ugliness and have no idea what they are doing.

[mightyace]

Who ever came up with this font should be hanged.

IIRC The person that developed Clearview is a professor at Penn State University in State College, PA.

Maybe the proximity to I-99 clouded his judgment!   

[wytout]

There are also a few I-75 shields done in Clearview in the UP. Interstate 96 has several on the drive leading west from its beginning. Interstate 696 eastbound has at least two as well. All look bad...

Clearview is bad enough on BGS's.  But at least most of those BGS's still use the graceful FHWA Standard fonts for numbers on Route shields. This is horrible.  Those shields are FUgly.  I still say there is nothing more pleasing to the eyes than than the Type C and Type D number set in standard FHWA fonts.

[Alex]

Clearview adorning this westbound main line reassurance shield in Detroit.



2di-width Clearview fonted eastbound main line shield for Interstate 696.

[simguy228]

... Clearview is kinda creepy to me. Would'nt think they would use it on many highways

There are also a few I-75 shields done in Clearview in the UP. Interstate 96 has several on the drive leading west from its beginning. Interstate 696 eastbound has at least two as well. All look bad...

Is that in FL? If so what part of FL

[agentsteel53]

no, it's in Michigan.  Sault Ste Marie

[simguy228]

Oh...