Unique, Odd, or Interesting Signs aka The good, the bad, and the ugly

[ErmineNotyours]

The Freeways that either parallel or (ideally) are surrounded by another freeway? thread uncovered this gem in Sacramento: non-shield, nearly faded "Freeway 80 East" sign with a faded right lane ends diagram in the distance.

[Bruce]

Mildly interesting, but it looks like the signs for entering Shoreline, Mountlake Terrace, and Snohomish County were intentionally removed in 2021 on Interstate 5 northbound when whatever construction project started. Not exactly sure what they're doing:

Pre-2021:

Shoreline, with sign: https://goo.gl/maps/YiXpPxNnL5E4zq3r5
Mountlake Terrace and Snohomish County, with signs: https://goo.gl/maps/m4qhSF9xkDZGnUAM6

Currently:

Shoreline, with no sign: https://goo.gl/maps/t9qMjRBW35GvXpt1A
Mountlake Terrace and Snohomish County, with no signs: https://goo.gl/maps/DDjbptAJGN5VUwwu7

Interesting that in the second one, they kept the SR 104 exit sign.

The project in question is a much-needed light rail extension from Northgate to Lynnwood that should open in 2024 or 2025. Removing the Shoreline sign makes sense, but I'm scratching my head about the county line sign...it's not a huge deal but wouldn't have a real effect on construction access.

[Amaury]

While not a huge deal, as you mentioned–and hopefully those and Shoreline are put back up once the project is complete–considering they left all the other signs there (the exit, no parking, etc.), minus the bus/carpool sign, which seems to have been removed before the project even began, the Mountlake Terrace and county line signs weren't in the way, as you said. If they had removed the entire metal whatchamacallit, I would have understood it more. But hopefully they've noted everything that needs to be put back up upon the project's completion–signs and other things.

[Amaury]

Another interesting thing is that we appear to have "rare" signs for I-405 in Kirkland. (Kind of like shiny Pokémon in the games.)

It's a little hard to see the "405," but it's there.

Southbound: https://goo.gl/maps/dbK6vpGd4pRRAYmQ7
Northbound, with a random "U": https://goo.gl/maps/KoXdorVcjwYpvbv99

[Bruce]

Another interesting thing is that we appear to have "rare" signs for I-405 in Kirkland. (Kind of like shiny Pokémon in the games.)

It's a little hard to see the "405," but it's there.

Southbound: https://goo.gl/maps/dbK6vpGd4pRRAYmQ7
Northbound, with a random "U": https://goo.gl/maps/KoXdorVcjwYpvbv99

Just some button copy, with mild vandalism for the latter. I mentioned in another thread somewhere.

Those signs will be torn down soon when the NE 85th Street interchange is converted from a cloverleaf to a three-level dogbone hybrid interchange.

[Amaury]

Just some button copy, with mild vandalism for the latter.

Is that like a master copy or something?

But okay, vandalism, yeah. There's a lot of that around the Seattle area along I-5, mostly, but also in some places on I-90–and the Portland area, for that matter, along I-84. But it does rarely pop up in other areas of the state, such as in Ellensburg here on the roundabout circle: https://goo.gl/maps/RaYBnPJLrfk8zsYT9

Or here, descending Ryegrass eastbound: https://goo.gl/maps/NKL7njHBUKFBCzqg6 There are no dates after the roundabout was installed in Ellensburg there without the vandalism, but for the eastbound Ryegrass descent, it looks like it happened sometime after June 2019, as it was fine here: https://goo.gl/maps/EoinNfauZWiwrP3q8

[PurdueBill]

Another interesting thing is that we appear to have "rare" signs for I-405 in Kirkland. (Kind of like shiny Pokémon in the games.)

It's a little hard to see the "405," but it's there.

Southbound: https://goo.gl/maps/dbK6vpGd4pRRAYmQ7
Northbound, with a random "U": https://goo.gl/maps/KoXdorVcjwYpvbv99

The U logo sticker appears in many places; one has been on a button-copy sign for the Mass Pike near Copley Square in Boston for many years.
https://goo.gl/maps/gpBydQ6fE7Gvn9QK9

It appears to be this logo of a skate group that likes putting the stickers in very hard-to-reach locations.

http://www.hawaiianswers.com/what-does-the-symbol-with-the-u-and-a-downward-pointing-arrow-mean/

[ClassicHasClass]

But okay, vandalism, yeah. There's a lot of that around the Seattle area along I-5, mostly, but also in some places on I-90–and the Portland area, for that matter, along I-84. But it does rarely pop up in other areas of the state, such as in Ellensburg here on the roundabout circle: https://goo.gl/maps/RaYBnPJLrfk8zsYT9

What's with "I-90 EAST I-82 TO" (instead of, I assume, "I-90 EAST TO I-82")?

[Rothman]

But okay, vandalism, yeah. There's a lot of that around the Seattle area along I-5, mostly, but also in some places on I-90–and the Portland area, for that matter, along I-84. But it does rarely pop up in other areas of the state, such as in Ellensburg here on the roundabout circle: https://goo.gl/maps/RaYBnPJLrfk8zsYT9

What's with "I-90 EAST I-82 TO" (instead of, I assume, "I-90 EAST TO I-82")?

Yoda.

[Big John]

Another interesting thing is that we appear to have "rare" signs for I-405 in Kirkland. (Kind of like shiny Pokémon in the games.)

It's a little hard to see the "405," but it's there.

Southbound: https://goo.gl/maps/dbK6vpGd4pRRAYmQ7
Northbound, with a random "U": https://goo.gl/maps/KoXdorVcjwYpvbv99

The U logo sticker appears in many places; one has been on a button-copy sign for the Mass Pike near Copley Square in Boston for many years.
https://goo.gl/maps/gpBydQ6fE7Gvn9QK9

It appears to be this logo of a skate group that likes putting the stickers in very hard-to-reach locations.

http://www.hawaiianswers.com/what-does-the-symbol-with-the-u-and-a-downward-pointing-arrow-mean/

And the period after "Ave"?

[Amaury]

What's with "I-90 EAST I-82 TO" (instead of, I assume, "I-90 EAST TO I-82")?

They're correct, just that the text "east" and "to" are on the right side of the shields instead of the left.

[LilianaUwU]

Another interesting thing is that we appear to have "rare" signs for I-405 in Kirkland. (Kind of like shiny Pokémon in the games.)

It's a little hard to see the "405," but it's there.

Southbound: https://goo.gl/maps/dbK6vpGd4pRRAYmQ7
Northbound, with a random "U": https://goo.gl/maps/KoXdorVcjwYpvbv99

The U logo sticker appears in many places; one has been on a button-copy sign for the Mass Pike near Copley Square in Boston for many years.
https://goo.gl/maps/gpBydQ6fE7Gvn9QK9

It appears to be this logo of a skate group that likes putting the stickers in very hard-to-reach locations.

http://www.hawaiianswers.com/what-does-the-symbol-with-the-u-and-a-downward-pointing-arrow-mean/

"Putting stickers in very hard to reach locations" is a lot of words for what can be said in one word ("vandalism").

[elsmere241]

What's with "I-90 EAST I-82 TO" (instead of, I assume, "I-90 EAST TO I-82")?

They're correct, just that the text "east" and "to" are on the right side of the shields instead of the left.

That's the way they do it in Ellensburg.  (My wife was at CWU when we met.)  Where is this roundabout?  Is it new?

[Amaury]

It's by Flying J. It was added in 2021. Pretty pointless, if you ask me, as there was nothing wrong with the old setup, and it wasn't that busy.

It also makes these signs no longer accurate since now it goes down to a single lane: https://goo.gl/maps/1pU1yBzU3NQhb2py6 There is no left turn lane.

There was a slight change to the left one, as before the roundabout, the left one had "only," but they're still not correct now. Before the roundabout: https://goo.gl/maps/18FHAgVGBgRDwxPy5 And at some point, the arrow used to be on the left of "only": https://goo.gl/maps/pcVk6JHUz8M8uAdx5

Way before the roundabout happened, this sign used to be here: https://goo.gl/maps/Q2ZcCEdi8HvD1d5W6 Then it was slighly changed to remove the Canyon Road part and it was moved to be by the freeway entrance as seen here: https://goo.gl/maps/wbQfPC2r5a2RddGe6

I think my solution for the signs on the overpass would be to change them to a single sign and have it be exactly like one I mentioned above (https://goo.gl/maps/Q2ZcCEdi8HvD1d5W6), except for the Canyon Road part, instead of Canyon Road, have it say:

TO 821 SOUTH
Yakima River Canyon

Abbreviating where necessary.

[hotdogPi]

I don't want to waste a Flickr photo on this, but the sign warning of the Rapture here (Google Street View link) says Jesus is coming on October 28, 1992. I walked by it today.

[kphoger]

I don't want to waste a Flickr photo on this, but the sign warning of the Rapture here (Google Street View link) says Jesus is coming on October 28, 1992. I walked by it today.

Not to get into religion...  A year ago or so, I was filling in to teach an adult Sunday school class at my church.  As part of the lesson, I prepared a list of failed end-times predictions, in chronological order.  The first one on the list was around the time of Christ, and the last one was after the year 2000.  I could barely fit them all on one page, and I left a whole lot of them off the list.

[roadfro]

Incorrect use of a W1-7 Two-Directional Road sign to indicate the end of a road.

Also incorrect use of object markers.

[ethanhopkin14]

Incorrect use of a W1-7 Two-Directional Road sign to indicate the end of a road.

Also incorrect use of object markers.

That's not incorrect.  It's telling you that you have two options: turn into the lawn of the sheriff's office or turn into the woods. 

[kphoger]

Incorrect use of a W1-7 Two-Directional Road sign to indicate the end of a road.

Also incorrect use of object markers.

Hey, man, here's the house I grew up in as a small child:  https://goo.gl/maps/1nStWyA7qVwN83c87

[wanderer2575]

Truthful graffiti?

[formulanone]

Truthful graffiti?

Another invasion successfully thwarted.

[Amaury]

When county lines are different depending on the side of the road.

A couple of examples. The Chelan/Douglas County line on US 97 is in the middle of the Beebe Bridge, according to Google Maps; however, signage wise, Chelan County begins before the bridge on US 97 on the south side of the river: https://goo.gl/maps/43UmUjqtFsqALy9m8 And Douglas County begins before the bridge on US 97 on the north side of the river: https://goo.gl/maps/ZrRKrjjsARuDFcEW6

Similarly, the Chelan/Douglas County line on US 2/US 97 is in the middle of the Richard Odabashian Bridge; however, signage wise, Chelan County begins before the bridge on US 2/US 97 on the east side of the river: https://goo.gl/maps/2Q2LsN6DVTJLU6KU7 (Interesting point is that the Columbia River sign below the Chelan County sign fell off at some point, as it's there in earlier years seen on Google Maps, and it became slightly crooked at some point before falling off, but I don't find that one to be that big of a deal.) And Douglas County begins before the bridge on US 2/US 97 on the west side of the river: https://goo.gl/maps/uRCXxY2e45QTiANe9

These are just two examples.

[Rothman]

When county lines are different depending on the side of the road.

A couple of examples. The Chelan/Douglas County line on US 97 is in the middle of the Beebe Bridge, according to Google Maps; however, signage wise, Chelan County begins before the bridge on US 97 on the south side of the river: https://goo.gl/maps/43UmUjqtFsqALy9m8 And Douglas County begins before the bridge on US 97 on the north side of the river: https://goo.gl/maps/ZrRKrjjsARuDFcEW6

Similarly, the Chelan/Douglas County line on US 2/US 97 is in the middle of the Richard Odabashian Bridge; however, signage wise, Chelan County begins before the bridge on US 2/US 97 on the east side of the river: https://goo.gl/maps/2Q2LsN6DVTJLU6KU7 (Interesting point is that the Columbia River sign below the Chelan County sign fell off at some point, as it's there in earlier years seen on Google Maps, and it became slightly crooked at some point before falling off, but I don't find that one to be that big of a deal.) And Douglas County begins before the bridge on US 2/US 97 on the west side of the river: https://goo.gl/maps/uRCXxY2e45QTiANe9

These are just two examples.

Signage is not always right at the line, especially on bridges.

[PurdueBill]

"Putting stickers in very hard to reach locations" is a lot of words for what can be said in one word ("vandalism").

The people applying the stickers never seem to vandalize easy-to-reach signs, though. 

And the period after "Ave"?

Lots of older signs, and newer ones that carbon-copied older ones, have periods after street abbrev.  Massachusetts still has it in the style book to use periods after geographic abbrev, like "S. Boston" but not after street abbrev (e.g., "Granite Ave" with no period).

[Amaury]

Signage is not always right at the line, especially on bridges.

Yeah. I just find it interesting.