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Regional Boards => Pacific Southwest => Topic started by: pderocco on October 25, 2022, 01:36:37 AM

Title: New use of county route shields in California
Post by: pderocco on October 25, 2022, 01:36:37 AM
I've been up in NE California sightseeing. Today, I noticed in both Lassen and Modoc county several new blue and yellow pentagonal county route shields that are not part of the County Sign Route program. They just have 3-digit numbers on them. Modoc doesn't even participate in that program. For all I know,  there are lots of them in other places too. I'm wondering if there is now a move to sign lots more county routes, since so many counties have their own numbered routes having nothing to do with the County Sign Route program.
Title: Re: New use of county route shields in California
Post by: Max Rockatansky on October 25, 2022, 08:04:14 AM
It's probably more a case of that there really isn't anyone left on the state level maintaining the Lettered County Route program to care.  I've also seen similar County Route shields in Sierra County which have nothing to do with the letter route program. 

Some participating counties seem to be doing their own thing with the Letter County Route program.  Monterey County is putting up replacement county shields which omit the letter.  Tulare County pulled all their letter county route  shields aside J37 for reasons unknown. 
Title: Re: New use of county route shields in California
Post by: ClassicHasClass on October 25, 2022, 10:46:45 AM
Very interesting, because Lassen used to use their own shields for that ( example in Doyle: http://www.floodgap.com/roadgap/395/u15/#img_30 ) and Modoc didn't sign them at all, just putting them on street sign blades ( http://www.floodgap.com/roadgap/395/u17/#img_1 ).
Title: Re: New use of county route shields in California
Post by: Max Rockatansky on October 25, 2022, 11:09:48 AM
I grabbed pictures of quite a few of the Modoc County Route shields in this album for CA 139:

https://www.flickr.com/gp/151828809@N08/o1PTsvP83v
Title: Re: New use of county route shields in California
Post by: DTComposer on October 25, 2022, 02:25:50 PM
Quote from: Max Rockatansky on October 25, 2022, 08:04:14 AM
It's probably more a case of that there really isn't anyone left on the state level maintaining the Lettered County Route program to care.  I've also seen similar County Route shields in Sierra County which have nothing to do with the letter route program. 

Some participating counties seem to be doing their own thing with the Letter County Route program.  Monterey County is putting up replacement county shields which omit the letter.  Tulare County pulled all their letter county route  shields aside J37 for reasons unknown. 

I'm guessing it's the county, not the state, but in the last couple of years I've noticed a marked increase in new county route shields in Santa Clara County, especially along G2 (Lawrence Expressway), G10 (Blossom Hill Road), and G8 (Almaden Expressway/McKean Road). For decades, the signage was deprecating, if it still existed at all.

Of particular note is the G2 shield being featured on new BGS's at the Lawrence/Stevens Creek/I-280 interchange - not on I-280 itself, but on off-ramps and along the surface routes:
https://www.google.com/maps/@37.3204,-121.9940372,3a,75y,333.95h,67.05t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1shijBhZfWb_J9H1JVgqsRdQ!2e0!7i16384!8i8192 (https://www.google.com/maps/@37.3204,-121.9940372,3a,75y,333.95h,67.05t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1shijBhZfWb_J9H1JVgqsRdQ!2e0!7i16384!8i8192)
Title: Re: New use of county route shields in California
Post by: Max Rockatansky on October 25, 2022, 02:33:39 PM
Quote from: DTComposer on October 25, 2022, 02:25:50 PM
Quote from: Max Rockatansky on October 25, 2022, 08:04:14 AM
It's probably more a case of that there really isn't anyone left on the state level maintaining the Lettered County Route program to care.  I've also seen similar County Route shields in Sierra County which have nothing to do with the letter route program. 

Some participating counties seem to be doing their own thing with the Letter County Route program.  Monterey County is putting up replacement county shields which omit the letter.  Tulare County pulled all their letter county route  shields aside J37 for reasons unknown. 

I'm guessing it's the county, not the state, but in the last couple of years I've noticed a marked increase in new county route shields in Santa Clara County, especially along G2 (Lawrence Expressway), G10 (Blossom Hill Road), and G8 (Almaden Expressway/McKean Road). For decades, the signage was deprecating, if it still existed at all.

The background the Letter County Route program IMO is unnecessarily complicated:

https://www.cahighways.org/cnty13.html

The counties IMO should have autonomy regarding adding/deleting Sign County Routes.  I suspect in the case of Modoc County they opted to do their own thing rather than participate in the Letter County Route program.  Program points 7-9 alone made the Letter County Route a victim of apathy in modern times.
Title: Re: New use of county route shields in California
Post by: ClassicHasClass on October 26, 2022, 10:13:46 PM
Quote from: Max Rockatansky on October 25, 2022, 11:09:48 AM
I grabbed pictures of quite a few of the Modoc County Route shields in this album for CA 139:

https://www.flickr.com/gp/151828809@N08/o1PTsvP83v

I'm wondering if the ones you picked up were anomalies. There are a lot of county roads in Modoc, almost all of them with a number, but I only counted two discrete routes in your photos (unless you know there were more).
Title: Re: New use of county route shields in California
Post by: Max Rockatansky on October 26, 2022, 10:47:11 PM
Quote from: ClassicHasClass on October 26, 2022, 10:13:46 PM
Quote from: Max Rockatansky on October 25, 2022, 11:09:48 AM
I grabbed pictures of quite a few of the Modoc County Route shields in this album for CA 139:

https://www.flickr.com/gp/151828809@N08/o1PTsvP83v

I'm wondering if the ones you picked up were anomalies. There are a lot of county roads in Modoc, almost all of them with a number, but I only counted two discrete routes in your photos (unless you know there were more).

There was at least four that I saw scanning through the blog I did on CA 139.  The trouble I have is getting solid county route shields pictures at speed unless lightning conditions are nearly perfect.  Daniel witnessed the same thing when he was coming back from Klamath Falls a couple years ago. 

https://www.gribblenation.org/2021/09/oregon-route-39-and-california-state.html?m=1

Title: Re: New use of county route shields in California
Post by: bootmii on December 04, 2022, 03:09:43 PM
Quote from: Max Rockatansky on October 25, 2022, 08:04:14 AM
It's probably more a case of that there really isn't anyone left on the state level maintaining the Lettered County Route program to care.  I've also seen similar County Route shields in Sierra County which have nothing to do with the letter route program. 

Some participating counties seem to be doing their own thing with the Letter County Route program.  Monterey County is putting up replacement county shields which omit the letter.  Tulare County pulled all their letter county route  shields aside J37 for reasons unknown.
In your opinion, is San Mateo a G county, J county, or E county?
Title: Re: New use of county route shields in California
Post by: skluth on December 04, 2022, 03:43:37 PM
I don't think Riverside County even has county routes. OTOH, San Diego and Imperial Counties share a decent county route in S22  (https://www.google.com/maps/@33.2751482,-115.9718973,3a,15y,245.74h,87.12t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1s2hUTY6iUVmtuAYf6kyFbRQ!2e0!7i16384!8i8192)which goes through Borrego Springs.
Title: Re: New use of county route shields in California
Post by: Max Rockatansky on December 04, 2022, 04:14:52 PM
^^^

Riverside is in the R range.  CA 243 used to be Riverside County R1 as an example.  R2 (Kaiser Road) and R3 (former CA 83) both are still on the books as being defined but I've never seen signage.

Quote from: bootmii on December 04, 2022, 03:09:43 PM
Quote from: Max Rockatansky on October 25, 2022, 08:04:14 AM
It's probably more a case of that there really isn't anyone left on the state level maintaining the Lettered County Route program to care.  I've also seen similar County Route shields in Sierra County which have nothing to do with the letter route program. 

Some participating counties seem to be doing their own thing with the Letter County Route program.  Monterey County is putting up replacement county shields which omit the letter.  Tulare County pulled all their letter county route  shields aside J37 for reasons unknown.
In your opinion, is San Mateo a G county, J county, or E county?

G since San Mateo is the Central Coast grouping.
Title: Re: New use of county route shields in California
Post by: ClassicHasClass on December 04, 2022, 08:07:19 PM
R3 is signed: http://www.floodgap.com/roadgap/371/#sec_50

Riverside is the only county in zone R, which may explain the poor signage, since there's no interjurisdictional need. At one time there was supposed to be a continuation of SDCo S16 but I don't know if that was ever signed.
Title: Re: New use of county route shields in California
Post by: Max Rockatansky on December 04, 2022, 08:25:35 PM
Quote from: ClassicHasClass on December 04, 2022, 08:07:19 PM
R3 is signed: http://www.floodgap.com/roadgap/371/#sec_50

Riverside is the only county in zone R, which may explain the poor signage, since there's no interjurisdictional need. At one time there was supposed to be a continuation of SDCo S16 but I don't know if that was ever signed.

That R3 from CA 79 was gone when I drove the corridor in 2019.  Regarding R2 I don't recall it being signed when I drove it in 2011, but I was more focused on Eagle Mountain and ghost towns versus highway signage at the time.
Title: Re: New use of county route shields in California
Post by: cl94 on December 04, 2022, 08:54:46 PM
"New" is relative. I've seen some other 3 digit shields in that part of the state that are faded. See this shield in Boca, Nevada County (https://goo.gl/maps/gx7UvRpjaMWFogEy7). Lassen County historically used white on green squares for CRs, but they've been moving to pentagons.
Title: Re: New use of county route shields in California
Post by: ClassicHasClass on December 07, 2022, 10:30:17 PM
Lassen used to have both (pentagons for zoned routes and squares for, I guess, secondary routes). Some of the secondary routes even had names. I suppose they're just switching everything over now.