New York

[webny99]

I feel like this photo captures the current standards for exit signage fairly well (aside from the centered NY 55 shield) (at least for participating regions/projects): http://nysroads.com/photos.php?route=tsp&state=NY&file=101_9117.JPG

Also, WEST should be on the other side of the NY 55 shield.

[PHLBOS]

I feel like this photo captures the current standards for exit signage fairly well (aside from the centered NY 55 shield) (at least for participating regions/projects): http://nysroads.com/photos.php?route=tsp&state=NY&file=101_9117.JPG

Also, WEST should be on the other side of the NY 55 shield.

Actually, the entire 55 WEST legend should be more centered with respect to the below-control city legend; see the exit ramp BGS further down as an example.  I'm guessing that such a fabrication error and the WEST legend was an overlooked entity that was placed on at the last moment before the panel left the shop.

[vdeane]

I feel like this photo captures the current standards for exit signage fairly well (aside from the centered NY 55 shield) (at least for participating regions/projects): http://nysroads.com/photos.php?route=tsp&state=NY&file=101_9117.JPG

Also, WEST should be on the other side of the NY 55 shield.

Actually, the entire 55 WEST legend should be more centered with respect to the below-control city legend; see the exit ramp BGS further down as an example.  I'm guessing that such a fabrication error and the WEST legend was an overlooked entity that was placed on at the last moment before the panel left the shop.

Yeah, the whole "NY 55 West" legend should be centered, rather than the NY 55 shield.  Unfortunately I didn't clarify that properly in my post.  Not sure why "West" would be on the left.  That would actually be an oddity.

[SignBridge]

The compass direction can be mounted on either side or above the route-shield as per the MUTCD. Different agencies seem to have different preferences and practices on that. I personally prefer the direction to almost always be to the right of the shield. I'd like to see that as the uniform standard.

[vdeane]

I think NY is right more often than not, with some on top, especially if there are a lot of shields needing direction banners on a sign.  I don't see left too often, here or elsewhere.

[Alps]

Thought you guys might get a kick out of this, NYCDOT or NYSDOT replaced these signs a few weeks ago and with a 295 shield in place of a 278 shield.

Since no one has said anything yet - thank you. Wish I lived on that side of the river to check it out.

[jp the roadgeek]

The compass direction can be mounted on either side or above the route-shield as per the MUTCD. Different agencies seem to have different preferences and practices on that. I personally prefer the direction to almost always be to the right of the shield. I'd like to see that as the uniform standard.

I agree, except in the case of where you have " ROUTE X DIRECTION TO ROUTE Y (DIRECTION).  In that case, the directions belong on top of the shield.  If it's a case of "ROUTE X TO ROUTE Y DIRECTION, then the direction can either go to the right or on top depending on the size of the shield and the room left going across. 

[machias]

I think NY is right more often than not, with some on top, especially if there are a lot of shields needing direction banners on a sign.  I don't see left too often, here or elsewhere.

Region 2 has a habit of putting the cardinal direction over the route marker, even when there's plenty of room to either side of the marker. I found R2 does it more than other regions.

The centered NY 55 marker is not surprising; that is has been happening more and more over the past couple of years, almost like GuidSIGN is putting it there and then the designer is adding the cardinal direction in afterwards by hand.

[machias]

I think NY is right more often than not, with some on top, especially if there are a lot of shields needing direction banners on a sign.  I don't see left too often, here or elsewhere.

Back before 2009 it was the practice to put the cardinal direction to the left of the marker for left side direction and to the right for right side direction.

WEST 17         81 NORTH
  Elmira            Syracuse
(left arrows)  (right arrows)

[PHLBOS]

The compass direction can be mounted on either side or above the route-shield as per the MUTCD.

The only times I've seen such displayed in the MUTCD is for left side/lane movements/exits and/or on diagrammatic signs for left side/lane movements.  Not for cloverleaf interchanges like the fore-mentioned NY 55/Taconic State Parkway interchange.

[webny99]

Not sure why "West" would be on the left.  That would actually be an oddity.

Doesn't the MUTCD say that the direction should be on whichever side of the shield the route goes? In other words, NY 55 West is a left turn, so WEST should be on the left. NY 55 East is a right turn, so EAST should be on the right. If I recall correctly, this is supposed to help drivers visualize their movement - west is this way, east is that way.

Here is one such example on I-390 at I-490

[PHLBOS]

In other words, NY 55 West is a left turn, so WEST should be on the left.

Incorrect, the NY 55/Taconic State Parkway interchange is a cloverleaf type.  The ramp to NY 55 westbound is the next immediate right after the Parkway crosses over NY 55.

[webny99]

In other words, NY 55 West is a left turn, so WEST should be on the left.

Incorrect, the NY 55/Taconic State Parkway interchange is a cloverleaf type.  The ramp to NY 55 westbound is the next immediate right after the Parkway crosses over NY 55.

Whoa, sorry for the misunderstanding. Obviously, the exit is to the right. I should have said left movement. To a motorist on the northbound Taconic, NY 55 West itself heads left from the junction, so if the shield was on the left, that would be a visual cue of such.

[J N Winkler]

When I mock up an exit direction sign (such as the ones being talked about for NY 55 off the Taconic), I generally build the legend block first and then align the arrow to it in a manner that is plausible for the agency (vertically centered to the right for "Winkler's Bureau of Traffic Design," often identifiable through the use of routes and destinations that cannot possibly exist in the US; bottom right-justified for TxDOT; bottom center-justified for Montana DOT; etc.).  Within the legend block itself, I typically integrate route shield and corresponding cardinal direction into a sub-block or nest of sub-blocks that is aligned to the placename block (generally horizontally centered above it, but sometimes vertically centered to the left or right if I am aping Caltrans).  But I am working only with computer screen surface area, which comes to me at negligible marginal cost.  On plan sheets and in the field I see many alignment styles, some of them quite oddball.

*  In an apparent bid to save sign panel surface area, Nebraska DOT often puts the shield and arrow in a block that is horizontally centered above the destination.  (Looks ugly!)

*  Kansas DOT often puts the destination and arrow in a block at the bottom of the sign and horizontally centers the route above it.

As regards stippled-arrow diagrammatics, they are a bit of a special case.  It aids interpretation of the sign if the graphic element (the shield) is the closest thing to the arrowhead, and cardinal direction word to the left of the shield for the left movement falls out of that.

[PHLBOS]

In other words, NY 55 West is a left turn, so WEST should be on the left.

Incorrect, the NY 55/Taconic State Parkway interchange is a cloverleaf type.  The ramp to NY 55 westbound is the next immediate right after the Parkway crosses over NY 55.

Whoa, sorry for the misunderstanding. Obviously, the exit is to the right. I should have said left movement. To a motorist on the northbound Taconic, NY 55 West itself heads left from the junction, so if the shield was on the left, that would be a visual cue of such.

To my knowledge, cloverleaf interchanges are never signed per your description.  Such IMHO would cause more not less confusion due to the possibility of a motorist thinking that the second ramp is indeed on the left.  See page 229 in the MUTCD for appropriate sign legends for cloverleaf interchanges.

[webny99]

To my knowledge, cloverleaf interchanges are never signed per your description.  Such IMHO would cause more not less confusion due to the possibility of a motorist thinking that the second ramp is indeed on the left.  See page 229 in the MUTCD for appropriate sign legends for cloverleaf interchanges.

Well, I didn't just dream it up. Perhaps I am thinking of left exits.

To me, it seems intuitive to match the signage with the cardinal direction. It is already assumed that exits are on the right, and there are plenty of other ways to clarify when a left exit occurs. Having WEST point in the actual west direction would be a nice cue, but I get that many other motorists are not as attuned to that kind of thing as I am.

[Rothman]

Have to say I don't agree with the idea that you should put a direction to the left because that direction is to the left.  Seems more likely it would be a slight pull to the actual left when the ramp is on the right.  That doesn't strike me as desirable and probably why the MUTCD doesn't have that format in there.

[webny99]

I should have kept my mouth shut (or fingers in my pockets, as the case may be).
For some reason, I was so certain that it was the standard, yet every example I can find of the direction on the left is at a left exit.

[jp the roadgeek]

New signage in CT still has the direction to the right, even for a left hand exit.  Here's an example a gantry with consecutive left exits, one with the direction to the right, and the other with the direction over the route shield with a TO

[D-Dey65]

Thought you guys might get a kick out of this, NYCDOT or NYSDOT replaced these signs a few weeks ago and with a 295 shield in place of a 278 shield.

Since no one has said anything yet - thank you. Wish I lived on that side of the river to check it out.

I'm looking everywhere on Google Maps from Astoria to Corona, and I still can't figure out where these signs are supposed to be. And I walked from the 65th Street Subway Station on the IND Queens Boulevard Line to the St. Michael's Cemetery in the BQE-GCP Triangle in April, so I should've recognized the signposts if they were along the way.

[Alps]

New signage in CT still has the direction to the right, even for a left hand exit.  Here's an example a gantry with consecutive left exits, one with the direction to the right, and the other with the direction over the route shield with a TO

To be honest, I had to scour the MUTCD for guidance on this not too long ago, and there is nothing that specifies whether the direction comes before or after the shield. Something I'll make a mental note of to comment on the next NPA.

[SignBridge]

I believe Alps is correct on that. I noticed too that the Manual doesn't specify where the cardinal should be, only requiring that it be displayed. But seeing also, that the many sign diagrams in the Manual show the cardinal both right, left and above the route shields, I deduce that the intent was to permit whichever format the designer finds appropriate.

Again I would like to see a uniform standard of displaying the cardinal to the right of the shield as I find that to be the most easily understandable, route number followed by direction. Even in cases where two or three shields and cardinals are shown on one sign I still prefer that format even if it requires a much wider sign face. I think it would be worth it for easier readability.

[webny99]

There are cases where I prefer to find the cardinal direction above the shield. Two or more shields on the same BGS, for starters.

Imagine how intense it would be if you had three or four shields on one sign with all the cardinals on the right. The middle one(s) would have a cardinal on both sides, a recipe for confusion. Legend and shield sizes would have to decrease just to fit the sign over the road.
Or you could stack the shields vertically, but then think about how tall the sign would be. There would be no space allotment left to include the destinations.

[SignBridge]

Many agencies do place the cardinal above the shields in those cases, but I always found it awkward to read the cardinal before the route number. I guess everyone's visual/reading preference is different.

I find it interesting that on the German Autobahns they only display city names and route shields. No cardinal directions are used. Eliminates the whole problem (chuckle!) But I believe the American practice is better, more informative.

[crispy93]

Thought you guys might get a kick out of this, NYCDOT or NYSDOT replaced these signs a few weeks ago and with a 295 shield in place of a 278 shield.

Since no one has said anything yet - thank you. Wish I lived on that side of the river to check it out.

I'm looking everywhere on Google Maps from Astoria to Corona, and I still can't figure out where these signs are supposed to be. And I walked from the 65th Street Subway Station on the IND Queens Boulevard Line to the St. Michael's Cemetery in the BQE-GCP Triangle in April, so I should've recognized the signposts if they were along the way.

It's roughly at Astoria Blvd EB and 30th St. Looks like the old sign on the right did not have a 278 shield. The new one has an erroneous "295 West." https://www.google.com/maps/@40.7698262,-73.9164171,3a,78y,98.63h,100.6t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1siza4Ero15GQl-WyVY-Hjvw!2e0!7i16384!8i8192