Folding "WATCH FOR ICE" signs

[bugo]

Arkansas used these into the '80s.  I don't remember seeing any in other states.

[Brandon]

Arkansas used these into the '80s.  I don't remember seeing any in other states.

IIRC, I saw some folding ones in Nebraska on I-80.  The ones in Indiana and Michigan are permanent and do not fold.

[AsphaltPlanet]

I think Arizona and Utah still use them.

[realjd]

FDOT uses fixed signs, at least District 6 does.

[Truvelo]

It's stupid driving around in boiling heat during July and seeing ice signs next to palm trees

[The High Plains Traveler]

Isn't that another version of "BRIDGE FREEZES BEFORE ROAD"? We saw those in Mississippi and Alabama nearly down to the Gulf.

[Big John]

Isn't that another version of "BRIDGE FREEZES BEFORE ROAD"? We saw those in Mississippi and Alabama nearly down to the Gulf.

2003 MUTCD added sign W8-13 to say "Bridge Ices Before Road" as standard language for this situation.

[Mapmikey]

North Carolina used to used folded signs for icy bridges

Mapmikey

[Ian]

NYSDOT likes to use folding "ICY PAVEMENT ZONE" signs on occasion.

[realjd]

It's stupid driving around in boiling heat during July and seeing ice signs next to palm trees

That particular sign was put up as a joke and it sadly isn't there anymore. I assure you the Seven Mile Bridge has never iced. 

[InterstateNG]

Texas has them.

[SteveG1988]

I wonder, would there ever be a way to make one that automatically deploys when it gets too cold, like a strip of metal latching it closed that reacts to 32 degrees or less?

[US81]

Texas has them.

Texas has had them for some time. There are older versions still around that, when open, say "Watch for Ice on Bridges" and, when closed, say "Drive Friendly." 

I appreciate the sentiment, but the grammar geek in me has always cringed a little.

[NE2]

Florida has folding smoke-fog signs on SR 528.

[Scott5114]

Oklahoma used them until around 2005-ish.

[hbelkins]

All kinds of them along US 52 in southern Ohio.

[_Simon]

Delaware River Joint Toll Bridge Commission uses them on the Phillipsburg-Easton free bridge in conjunction with slippery-when-wet signs.  NJDOT uses "BRIDGE FREEZES BEFORE ROAD SURFACE" a lot.

[corco]

Kansas uses them too, right? And flipped down they say something about not littering? Or am I mixing it up with another state.

[Mapmikey]

South Carolina had them until about mid 1980s.  When folded up they were black and white triangle signs that said "drive safely"

Mapmikey

[Mapmikey]

I wonder, would there ever be a way to make one that automatically deploys when it gets too cold, like a strip of metal latching it closed that reacts to 32 degrees or less?

This already exists...here is one on US 58 in eastern Virginia Beach

http://goo.gl/maps/eGriO

Mapmikey

[Central Avenue]

I've definitely seen the folding "WATCH FOR ICE ON BRIDGE" signs on Ohio's roads, though they seem to have adopted fixed "BRIDGE FREEZES BEFORE ROAD" signs instead over the past few years, and the remaining folding signs seem to be displayed year-round...such as this one Google captured in June.

[vtk]

Franklin County Engineer's Office appears to have adopted ODOT's fondness for folding "watch for ice on bridge" signs sometime in the 20th century and most are still around. It seems to me it was always hit-or-miss as to whether a sign would be folded or displayed in the warmer months.

By the way, the ones I'm familiar with are folded off-center, so when closed they look like a diamond (gem) or the Superman emblem.

[WichitaRoads]

Kansas uses them too, right? And flipped down they say something about not littering? Or am I mixing it up with another state.

That's Kansas for sure.

ICTRds

[txstateends]

Texas has them.

Texas has had them for some time. There are older versions still around that, when open, say "Watch for Ice on Bridges" and, when closed, say "Drive Friendly." 

I appreciate the sentiment, but the grammar geek in me has always cringed a little.

Some of the signs in TX that aren't foldable are (usually) turned sideways when not cold/icy.

Another example in TX: some foldable signs can be found on the same post just below an Adopt-A-Highway sign; they have something to the effect of 'Litter Crew Ahead' (when members of the group that adopts the next 2 miles of highway are alongside the road picking up trash) on them and IIRR, are construction-orange in color.  Not all Adopt-A-Highway signposts have the foldable signs below them.

[roadman]

The winter before last, MassDOT started posting "Plows Use Caution" signs on Interstates and freeways immediately prior to the start of bridge decks.  The rationale for the signs is so drivers will lift the plow blades prior to the transition between the approach pavement and the bridge.  As MassDOT still relies heavily on private contractors for most of their snow removal, use of text signs was deemed a better option than smaller MUTCD standard object markers.

The signs are neither foldable nor temporary, they remain in place even during warm-weather months.