What would you consider old

[traffic light guy]

As for signs, if they've been around for more than 30 years, they're old. Signals, it's more complicated, they're new if they were installed five or less years ago. They're modern if they were installed between 2004 and 2010. They're middle aged if they're from the 90s, older if they're from the 1980s, just plain old if they're from the 70s, extremely old if they're from the 1960s, and ancient if they're well over four decades old.

[MNHighwayMan]

Whenever it starts to bip.

[thenetwork]

As for signs, if they've been around for more than 30 years, they're old. Signals, it's more complicated, they're new if they were installed five or less years ago. They're modern if they were installed between 2004 and 2010. They're middle aged if they're from the 90s, older if they're from the 1980s, just plain old if they're from the 70s, extremely old if they're from the 1960s, and ancient if they're well over four decades old.

Traffic Signals:  If they are metal (mostly from or earlier than the 1970s), they are vintage.  If they are plastic (1980s-present), they are mostly modern (crap)!

[webny99]

The thread title lends itself to some interesting possibilities. One becomes a senior citizen at age 65, so there's that. 

[jeffandnicole]

The thread title lends itself to some interesting possibilities. One becomes a senior citizen at age 65, so there's that. 

AARP membership starts at 50; Discounted food starts at various agesat various restaurants. Social Security starts at 62; full SS starts at 67 1/2 (I believe). There's nothing truly significant about 65 years of age.

[NE2]

Your mom.

[TheArkansasRoadgeek]

Cougars


iPhone

[hotdogPi]

When a road gets bypaſſed, and the route deſignation gets put onto the bypaſs, the bypaſſed road becomes old. For example, Old Route 10 in Grantham, New Hampſhire, which is part of a ſet of roads with no outlet that is only acceſſible from I-89, Old Highway 78 in Stone Mountain, which I can't ſee as ever having been part of US 78 (although it muſt have been at one time if it has that name), and Old Route 66 acroſs the country.

[webny99]

The thread title lends itself to some interesting possibilities. One becomes a senior citizen at age 65, so there's that. 

AARP membership starts at 50; Discounted food starts at various ages at various restaurants. Social Security starts at 62; full SS starts at 67 1/2 (I believe). There's nothing truly significant about 65 years of age.

Of course, but the question was phrased 'what do you consider...", and so is fairly open to individual interpretation.

At age 18, with parents in their 40's, my personal answer, with respect to the human life cycle, would be "over 50". Pretty sure members of older generations would dispute that interpretation. 

[webny99]

When a road gets bypaſſed, and the route deſignation gets put onto the bypaſs, the bypaſſed road becomes old. For example, Old Route 10 in Grantham, New Hampſhire, which is part of a ſet of roads with no outlet that is only acceſſible from I-89, Old Highway 78 in Stone Mountain, which I can't ſee as ever having been part of US 78 (although it muſt have been at one time if it has that name), and Old Route 66 acroſs the country.

I must admit to being confused by the replacement of every letter "s" by that unearthly character in this post. It looks like it needs to be read aloud by someone with a lysp.

Granted, this thread has been characterized by total randomness (and "your mom" was probably the most respectable answer so far  ).

[hotdogPi]

When a road gets bypaſſed, and the route deſignation gets put onto the bypaſs, the bypaſſed road becomes old. For example, Old Route 10 in Grantham, New Hampſhire, which is part of a ſet of roads with no outlet that is only acceſſible from I-89, Old Highway 78 in Stone Mountain, which I can't ſee as ever having been part of US 78 (although it muſt have been at one time if it has that name), and Old Route 66 acroſs the country.

I must admit to being confused by the replacement of every letter "s" by that unearthly character in this post. It looks like it needs to be read aloud by someone with a lysp.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Long_s

[MNHighwayMan]

Granted, this thread has been characterized by total randomness (and "your mom" was probably the most respectable answer so far  ).

Reply #2 actually took the OP seriously and answered his question.

[webny99]

Granted, this thread has been characterized by total randomness (and "your mom" was probably the most respectable answer so far  ).

Reply #2 actually took the OP seriously and answered his question.

Technically, all the replies have been inspired by the OP; #2 (and #7) just happen to be responses to the question in the post instead of the question in the title. 

So I guess there's really two questions for which we can rate the respectability of the answers.

[paulthemapguy]

Your mom.

I CAME HERE TO SAY THIS

[MNHighwayMan]

Your mom.

I CAME HERE TO SAY THIS

She's still a nice lady, though. Of course you take her to dinner first before heading back to her place.

[slorydn1]

My kids say me.

[jakeroot]

Since it's now been six years since I saw one installed, signals painted dark green. This is the newest one I know of, a PEEK signal installed in 2012. Probably one of the most recent PEEK signals installed in my area: https://goo.gl/zFgq69

If it's on a state highway, any McCain is probably pretty old. WSDOT has been using those Eagle bubble things for quite a while now. The last McCains are probably from the early 2000s.

Thinner signal masts usually indicate an older signal (not necessarily signal heads though). Old vs new for example. Not a massive difference, but somewhat noticeable. Also, if it doesn't have a light pole sticking out the top of it, it's probably old.

At the rate signals are replaced, any signal older than 2000 is showing its age, either in the form of a peeling backplate or an old signal manufacturer that I don't see anymore (those 9-sided diamondbacks and those that look like McCains with a dot in the middle are always old).

[freebrickproductions]

...(those 9-sided diamondbacks...

Sounds like an Econolite "Button-back" signal.

...those that look like McCains with a dot in the middle are always old).

Example of one?

[jakeroot]

...(those 9-sided diamondbacks...

Sounds like an Econolite "Button-back" signal.

That's the one. Example near me: https://goo.gl/TWCgrB

...those that look like McCains with a dot in the middle are always old).

Example of one?

They actually look more like a rounded PEEK than a McCain. My bad: https://goo.gl/YScZ1r

[freebrickproductions]

...those that look like McCains with a dot in the middle are always old).

Example of one?

They actually look more like a rounded PEEK than a McCain. My bad: https://goo.gl/YScZ1r

Aluminum ICC/Safetran signal. There's a good number of the ICC ones around Alabama, though I'm personally only aware of two Safetran ones in Athens here in Alabama. IIRC, ICC did become part of Peek.

[jakeroot]

...those that look like McCains with a dot in the middle are always old).

Example of one?

They actually look more like a rounded PEEK than a McCain. My bad: https://goo.gl/YScZ1r

Aluminum ICC/Safetran signal. There's a good number of the ICC ones around Alabama, though I'm personally only aware of two Safetran ones in Athens here in Alabama. IIRC, ICC did become part of Peek.

Ahh, thanks for the info. The one I linked to was probably one of the newest in my area. Maybe early 00s?

If ICC was absorbed into Peek, what about Safetran? Assuming I understand you correctly, and that they're two different companies. Either way, these aren't being manufactured anymore, correct?

[freebrickproductions]

...those that look like McCains with a dot in the middle are always old).

Example of one?

They actually look more like a rounded PEEK than a McCain. My bad: https://goo.gl/YScZ1r

Aluminum ICC/Safetran signal. There's a good number of the ICC ones around Alabama, though I'm personally only aware of two Safetran ones in Athens here in Alabama. IIRC, ICC did become part of Peek.

Ahh, thanks for the info. The one I linked to was probably one of the newest in my area. Maybe early 00s?

If ICC was absorbed into Peek, what about Safetran? Assuming I understand you correctly, and that they're two different companies. Either way, these aren't being manufactured anymore, correct?

The ICCs here in Alabama appear to be from the 1990s and early 2000s. Not sure what happened to Safetran, it appears that they were made alongside ICC signals (just with a different brand), and Safetran's traffic signal division is still around making traffic signal controllers, though they're owned by Econolite now:
https://www.safetran-traffic.com/

Not sure how Safetran got into traffic control, as I believe they initially started out making railroad crossing equipment after Railroad Accessories Corp. (RACO) became Safetran somehow in the 1970s. Safetran lasted until about 2011, when they were absorbed into Invensys Rail, which was then absorbed into Siemens in 2014.

[PurdueBill]

When a road gets bypaſſed, and the route deſignation gets put onto the bypaſs, the bypaſſed road becomes old. For example, Old Route 10 in Grantham, New Hampſhire, which is part of a ſet of roads with no outlet that is only acceſſible from I-89, Old Highway 78 in Stone Mountain, which I can't ſee as ever having been part of US 78 (although it muſt have been at one time if it has that name), and Old Route 66 acroſs the country.

I must admit to being confused by the replacement of every letter "s" by that unearthly character in this post. It looks like it needs to be read aloud by someone with a lysp.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Long_s

I got it right away but that was helped by growing up in Maffachufetts and seeing old documents and stuff with the long s.  Some of them are still on display in the local mvsevms. 

[bcroadguy]

I have no idea what this manufacturer is called but I haven't seen any signals like these that don't look really old:

Example 1: https://www.google.ca/maps/@49.1589527,-121.9587149,3a,19.3y,36.04h,136.47t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sV4PnqNS9LBbhfSWyn11DDA!2e0!7i13312!8i6656

Example 2:
https://www.google.ca/maps/@49.1819049,-123.9530863,3a,19.3y,314.82h,139.22t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sx782N1E9t8Or48hPWcTaxw!2e0!7i13312!8i6656

[jakeroot]

I have no idea what this manufacturer is called but I haven't seen any signals like these that don't look really old:

Example 1: https://www.google.ca/maps/@49.1589527,-121.9587149,3a,19.3y,36.04h,136.47t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sV4PnqNS9LBbhfSWyn11DDA!2e0!7i13312!8i6656

Example 2:
https://www.google.ca/maps/@49.1819049,-123.9530863,3a,19.3y,314.82h,139.22t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sx782N1E9t8Or48hPWcTaxw!2e0!7i13312!8i6656

I've seen those before. I think they're Canadian-market only. They remind me of the (Econolite?) Grooveback's.