Traffic Signals: Yellow or Black?

[Mdcastle]

Didn't yellow really start due to some since deleted advisory in the MUTCD?  I think the idea is with yellow heads it makes the entire installation more visable, while black provides more contrast. For many years in Minnesota the housing was yellow, but the doors, visors and backplate were black. The vertical post was also painted yellow (the tops were generally silver and the base was green, which I find butt-ugly, except for District 1 where everything was black).

Also, you almost never see anything other than Eagle and their successor Mark IV and 3M. (There's still a few c1950 Eaglelux "long fins" in Minneapolis mixed in with the sea of cheap plastic).
The few McCains and Econolites are almost notable.

Mn/DOT buys all their poles from a single supplier in the western exurbs, and they were late in being able to galvanize the posts. Finally they started a few years ago, and now the poles are bare galvanized and the heads are black.

I'm not a fan of yellow, but I do own an all yellow Mark IV that came from the southeast with the powdercoating still bright. It stands out from all the other dull yellow and dark green stuff I have. 

[SidS1045]

How does the color of the housing impact the safety of a traffic signal? If anything, the black adds more contrast to the signal lights. Furthermore, changing to LEDs allows traffic signals to be seen much further away than before, which IMO would negate any change caused by a different color of paint.

Signal heads tend to fade into the background more readily when they're a darker color, and at night they disappear completely.

Living in Stoneham, I noticed the local DPW doing the painting last year, and wondered what dunderhead ordered it.  I don't recall it coming up in any town meeting, and haven't heard or seen anything about it in the MUTCD Massachusetts supplement.

[roadfro]

Darker colors do fade into background or disappear from view at night. However, the darker color (especially with black backplates) gives the signal a greater target value in very bright environments.

With most municipalities converting to LED signal units, the disappearance at nighttime is less of an issue since the signal indications tend to be much brighter against busy backgrounds.

[mjb2002]

SCDOT uses both colors. Black backplates with yellow retroreflective borders, mainly in urban areas like Aiken and Columbia.

They use yellow still in smaller communities like Denmark.

In fact, there are some black signals with yellow borders on the FHWA webpage.

[M3019C LPS20]

Are traffic signals in D.C. still gray?

[roadfro]

SCDOT uses both colors. Black backplates with yellow retroreflective borders, mainly in urban areas like Aiken and Columbia.

In fact, there are some black signals with yellow borders on the FHWA webpage.

The yellow reflective border was introduced as an option in the 2009 MUTCD as one method to enhance conspicuousness of signal heads. It's a pretty decent compromise between black and yellow to address the visibility concerns of each.

[Ian]

Are traffic signals in D.C. still gray?

From what I've seen, no. All new signals are black in color.

[Takumi]

Charlotte has signals with both colors on them.

[Mr_Northside]

PennDOT recently redid the signals at the McKees Rocks Bridge / Ohio River Blvd (PA-65) intersection.
They're still yellow signals with a black background...  but these have a yellow border around them, which I have decided that I really like:

[roadfro]

Interesting with a re-done signal they still have circular red with "left turn signal" signs, even though those are not supposed to be used...

But yes, a nice look for the signal heads with that reflective yellow border.

[Fntp]

Interesting with a re-done signal they still have circular red with "left turn signal" signs, even though those are not supposed to be used...

But yes, a nice look for the signal heads with that reflective yellow border.

Sorry for the bump couldn't help but reply


True but penndot does not follow the mutcd for some odd reason even though they are suppose too.

[ET21]

Black mostly. Chicago has it's traditional dark green. But I've noticed that some newer lights at busy/rural intersections have begun to adopt yellow reflective backgrounds

[freebrickproductions]

Huntsville uses yellow, yellow with black doors and visors, black, and black with yellow doors and visors.
There's also brown mixed in from the Singers. I like yellow the best with black coming in at a close second.

[Alex4897]

I'm partial to Delaware's black visors and front of the housing, yellow back of the housing, with the occaisional black back plates strewn about.

[MillTheRoadgeek]

Virginia has mostly yellow signals with black rounded-rectangle backgrounds for traffic signals. I think I have seen some black ones, but they are mostly in old towns/modern mixed-use or shopping developments.

[roadman65]

 

Virginia has mostly yellow signals with black rounded-rectangle backgrounds for traffic signals. I think I have seen some black ones, but they are mostly in old towns/modern mixed-use or shopping developments.

The Hampton Roads Area from what I have seen on GSV seems to be moving toward black. 

I'm partial to Delaware's black visors and front of the housing, yellow back of the housing, with the occaisional black back plates strewn about.

Many other states have Delaware type of heads like Kansas and Illinois and I believe Maryland is starting to use them more.

[Henry]

Charlotte has signals with both colors on them.

That is interesting, as it's kind of like the best of both worlds. But if I had to pick a single color, I would go with black.

[roadman65]

Charlotte only does the visors in black as DE, IL, KS, and MD do the whole entire front black while leaving the behind side yellow.

Also I miss New Jersey's green signal heads very much.


Another thing to note, is I have found that black here in Florida does have the tendency to have its paint wear off down to the bare metal on the visors.  I do not know if that is from our brutal sun, or if somebody decided to use a cheaper paint then the rest of the states who have been using these for many decades before FDOT made FL change in the mid 80's.

[freebrickproductions]

Another thing to note, is I have found that black here in Florida does have the tendency to have its paint wear off down to the bare metal on the visors.  I do not know if that is from our brutal sun, or if somebody decided to use a cheaper paint then the rest of the states who have been using these for many decades before FDOT made FL change in the mid 80's.

I've seen that happen up here in Huntsville, AL. It's because the brand that Florida uses, which is Peek, uses very cheap paint on their aluminum signals.

[Alex4897]

I'm partial to Delaware's black visors and front of the housing, yellow back of the housing, with the occaisional black back plates strewn about.

Many other states have Delaware type of heads like Kansas and Illinois and I believe Maryland is starting to use them more.

I believe they are.  It seems they've recently redone most of their signals on the Delmarva Peninsula and they have similarities to DE's style of signal.

[kj3400]

I'm partial to Delaware's black visors and front of the housing, yellow back of the housing, with the occaisional black back plates strewn about.

Many other states have Delaware type of heads like Kansas and Illinois and I believe Maryland is starting to use them more.

I believe they are.  It seems they've recently redone most of their signals on the Delmarva Peninsula and they have similarities to DE's style of signal.

Most of the central part of Maryland uses black visors and yellow backs. They've been replacing signals to this standard since about mid-2000.

[roadman65]

I also noticed that MD is also switching to mast arms as well.  I have been seeing more arms and less span wires since the 1990's as well.

[MillTheRoadgeek]

I'm partial to Delaware's black visors and front of the housing, yellow back of the housing, with the occaisional black back plates strewn about.

Many other states have Delaware type of heads like Kansas and Illinois and I believe Maryland is starting to use them more.

I believe they are.  It seems they've recently redone most of their signals on the Delmarva Peninsula and they have similarities to DE's style of signal.

Most of the central part of Maryland uses black visors and yellow backs. They've been replacing signals to this standard since about mid-2000.

Wait-- Do you mean the middle of the year 2000 or the mid 2000s (in my standard, 2004-2006)? Just wondering.

[kj3400]

I'm partial to Delaware's black visors and front of the housing, yellow back of the housing, with the occaisional black back plates strewn about.

Many other states have Delaware type of heads like Kansas and Illinois and I believe Maryland is starting to use them more.

I believe they are.  It seems they've recently redone most of their signals on the Delmarva Peninsula and they have similarities to DE's style of signal.

Most of the central part of Maryland uses black visors and yellow backs. They've been replacing signals to this standard since about mid-2000.

Wait-- Do you mean the middle of the year 2000 or the mid 2000s (in my standard, 2004-2006)? Just wondering.

The latter. Then again, it might have been earlier, I don't know.

[iwishiwascanadian]

Baltimore City tends to use all yellow lights, the really old ones are faded yellow and the new ones the city puts in are all yellow.  I have seen a few down by the northern portals for the Harbor Tunnel (when 95 goes over 895) that are the traditional yellow and black common to Maryland but I'm guessing that those were put in by the MdTA.