New England trip

[Truvelo]

The weekend before last I was in Boston attending a show but afterwards I was able to spend a couple of days touring NH, VT and ME.

Here's a bunch of pictures I took.

I don't like the layout of this sign. It suggests the exits are at right angles.


I like the way the out of state shield has NH on it. The same goes for out of state destinations.


The obligatory state welcome sign. I intend to have one for each state eventually.


BGS on I-95 in Maine. Most, if not all, have distances in English and Metric. The one on this sign has definitely been patched. I wonder if it showed just miles originally?


I-93 Boston at the northern portal of the tunnel.


I-93 Boston at the southern portal. I hope there's no speed cameras in there as traffic was doing well in excess of 45.

[agentsteel53]

I don't like the layout of this sign. It suggests the exits are at right angles.
[91/89]

has this freeway-to-freeway connection always had an exit number?  I know 91/93 did not have one as recently as 2006, and may still not have one.

I like the way the out of state shield has NH on it. The same goes for out of state destinations.

VT has a variety of ways of signing out-of-state routes.  Here's possibly the best one.  (US-3 never goes into VT)



I've got a variety of NH-12s on this page

www.aaroads.com/shields/show.php?image=NH19630121&view=3

[Truvelo]

VT has a variety of ways of signing out-of-state routes.  Here's possibly the best one.  (US-3 never goes into VT)

Why would the US-3 shield have the state on it while the state route shield doesn't. Surely as part of a nationwide system there's no need for an out of state US route to be signed as such.

I've got a variety of NH-12s on this page

www.aaroads.com/shields/show.php?image=NH19630121&view=3

The group of signs in the last picture looks to be at the same location as mine

Also, what is the proper NH state route shield? Some have an outline of a head and others have a circle.

[Ian]

Awesome photos! Curious, what camera do you use? Also, what happened with US 5 shield on the right of the second photo? It looks like a mix between a US shield and a VT circle.

[agentsteel53]

Why would the US-3 shield have the state on it while the state route shield doesn't. Surely as part of a nationwide system there's no need for an out of state US route to be signed as such.

it does not need to be signed but in this case VT is clarifying that 3 is in another state.  the sign style is unique as far as I know.

the 253 is a VT state route, not NH.

Also, what is the proper NH state route shield? Some have an outline of a head and others have a circle.

the circle is an older Vermont (1973-1997 or so).  NH is a head.  The white background with the outlined head is older than the black background, and we're trying to figure out what year the white head was introduced, and what year the black one.  before the head, there was a plain square, similar to Mass.

[agentsteel53]

It looks like a mix between a US shield and a VT circle.

that is, indeed, exactly what it is.  Maybe they put two screens together and screen-printed black through them?  Or alternately they had a circle blank and needed a US shield so they pasted a white US background on.

sad how close the bloated US shield shape is to a circle; I didn't even notice it the first time I looked at the photos.

[Truvelo]

Awesome photos! Curious, what camera do you use?

I have a Nikon D300 with the cheapest of lenses attached - a 50mm f1.8 prime. No fancy zooms or anything. This el cheapo 50mm performs better than a $1500 zoom. Of course, the pictures have all been heavily corrected with regards to rotation, cropping, white balance to remove the blue/green tint when shooting through the windshield. Post processing is often more important to the final picture than the camera.

It looks like a mix between a US shield and a VT circle.

that is, indeed, exactly what it is.  Maybe they put two screens together and screen-printed black through them?  Or alternately they had a circle blank and needed a US shield so they pasted a white US background on.

sad how close the bloated US shield shape is to a circle; I didn't even notice it the first time I looked at the photos.

I never noticed it either. I've seen dodgy US shields somewhere else where the bottom of the shield is very pointy, maybe Kentucky.

[agentsteel53]

I have a Nikon D300 with the cheapest of lenses attached - a 50mm f1.8 prime. No fancy zooms or anything. This el cheapo 50mm performs better than a $1500 zoom. Of course, the pictures have all been heavily corrected with regards to rotation, cropping, white balance to remove the blue/green tint when shooting through the windshield. Post processing is often more important to the final picture than the camera.

indeed, that 50/1.8 is a great lens - I got mine used for $39 or something. 

Is the blue-green tint innate to the windshield?  I've always noted that my Nikon D50 tends to color everything green, especially around sunset and on overcast days - windshield in the way, or not.  In Photoshop, setting the green gamma to 0.92 or 0.93 tends to immediately work wonders for a photo.

I never noticed it either. I've seen dodgy US shields somewhere else where the bottom of the shield is very pointy, maybe Kentucky.

there are indeed many dodgy shields out there, especially Pennsylvania's acorn shield.  Shudder.

[Ian]

there are indeed many dodgy shields out there, especially Pennsylvania's acorn shield.  Shudder.

*facepalm*

[agentsteel53]

*facepalm*

I refuse to add such a thing to the shield gallery.

[Ian]

*facepalm*

I refuse to add such a thing to the shield gallery.

I don't blame you. The shield looks melted.

[froggie]

has this freeway-to-freeway connection always had an exit number?  I know 91/93 did not have one as recently as 2006, and may still not have one.

I-91 has always had exit numbers at its junctions with 89 and 93.  They may not have been posted in St. J at one point, but they've always officially existed.   It's I-89 and I-93 that haven't had exit numbers where they meet I-91.  And still don't.

[vdeane]

I don't see why I-93 would have an exit number at that point, given that it ends.  I-89 really should, though.

the circle is an older Vermont (1973-1997 or so). 

Is that why Vermont has both the circles and the green shield?  I've always wondered why they had two state route shields.

[agentsteel53]

I-91 has always had exit numbers at its junctions with 89 and 93.  They may not have been posted in St. J at one point, but they've always officially existed.   It's I-89 and I-93 that haven't had exit numbers where they meet I-91.  And still don't.

really?  I distinctly remember taking I-91 southbound and getting thrown by the numbering scheme and missing an exit.  I had looked at the map - which put nodes at the exits but did not show their numbers - and decided 'okay, I have to exit two nodes from now' (which, if I subtracted two, was exit 17, I think?) and then when I saw the exit 17 signage, I realized I had gone one exit too far, because I-93 had been unnumbered: two numbers had actually covered three exits.

[agentsteel53]

Is that why Vermont has both the circles and the green shield?  I've always wondered why they had two state route shields.

you can commonly find four different styles, and a fifth if you know where to look.

the green oval has been used since 1997.

the black and white circle was used from 1973 (or '75? I don't know for sure) until 1997.  There is a myth that town-maintained roads formally continue to use the black and white circle even as the state-maintained roads switch to the green oval: the reason the towns do so is a) usually they don't bother to replace the circles when they are completely serviceable, and b) when they do, they've got leftover circle blanks in the shop so they use those up.  Towns are starting to see lots of the green ovals by now, though.

before the black circle, there were two distinct styles used - a large rectangle (which I call "letterbox") for junctions, and a smaller one with the state name for reassurance.  In 1970, they switched to the letterbox for reassurance as well. 

here is a letterbox (1963-73/75/whenever):



and here is a 14x12 inch reassurance (1961-70):



for intersections between 1961-1963 they used a plain square.  this 14 is the only example I know of:



older styles do not survive, as far as I know.  Though you never know what a shop will pull out of the back room.  Sometime between 2006 and 2008, this 1961-1970 style reassurance marker appeared.



note the shiny new bolts!

[froggie]

really?  I distinctly remember taking I-91 southbound and getting thrown by the numbering scheme and missing an exit.  I had looked at the map - which put nodes at the exits but did not show their numbers - and decided 'okay, I have to exit two nodes from now' (which, if I subtracted two, was exit 17, I think?) and then when I saw the exit 17 signage, I realized I had gone one exit too far, because I-93 had been unnumbered: two numbers had actually covered three exits.

Going off of my VTrans maps and notes (with a minor correction from an earlier post included) yielded this:

Originally, the interchange at I-89 was unnumbered (this being the correction), but this changed ca. 1972.  It's been Exit 10 since then.

The interchange at I-93 has always been Exit 19, ever since I-93 was completed ca. 1982.

Towns are starting to see lots of the green ovals by now, though.

Not really.  The only new town-maintained green oval I'm aware of over the past 2 years is on VT 30 in Manchester.  And VTrans themselves are still posting new circle/oval shields...the latest one I'm aware if being at VT 11/VT 121.

[agentsteel53]

The interchange at I-93 has always been Exit 19, ever since I-93 was completed ca. 1982.

hm, I wonder what got me so befuddled then.  I distinctly remember missing an exit, with the numbers somehow not lining up.  I think I still have the map somewhere; finding that should jog my memory as to what went wrong. 

1982 is when I-93 came into Vermont?  That does explain the absence of '57-spec I-93 shields in that state.  I've never seen one.  Not sure what year VT switched over but my guess would be the early 70s, along with most states.

Not really.  The only new town-maintained green oval I'm aware of over the past 2 years is on VT 30 in Manchester.

I remember seeing plenty more in downtown intersections.  Are those state-maintained roads, then?  What differentiates a section of road inside town limits between being state-maintained and town-maintained?

And VTrans themselves are still posting new circle/oval shields...the latest one I'm aware if being at VT 11/VT 121.

I'm not surprised.  Gotta use up all the old blanks.  

[froggie]

1982 is when I-93 came into Vermont?  That does explain the absence of '57-spec I-93 shields in that state.  I've never seen one.  Not sure what year VT switched over but my guess would be the early 70s, along with most states.

Yep...I-93 was completed to just north of the river ca. 1982.  It wasn't extended down to Littleton (near Exit 43) until later...1986ish, give or take a year.

I remember seeing plenty more in downtown intersections.  Are those state-maintained roads, then?  What differentiates a section of road inside town limits between being state-maintained and town-maintained?

There's no rhyme or reason to it...very arbitrary.  Basically, where VTrans and the town have an agreement to, VTrans maintains the road.  But there are NUMEROUS cases where a road through a given town is maintained along one stretch by VTrans, and along another stretch by the town....hence the "State Highway Ends", "Through Way Begins Here", etc etc signs you see...those mark the change in maintenance responsibility.

I'm not surprised.  Gotta use up all the old blanks.

Catch is, they were brand new.

[agentsteel53]

Yep...I-93 was completed to just north of the river ca. 1982.  It wasn't extended down to Littleton (near Exit 43) until later...1986ish, give or take a year.

when you say "completed to just north of the river", between which two points?  From north of Franconia Notch, to I-91?

There's no rhyme or reason to it...very arbitrary.  Basically, where VTrans and the town have an agreement to, VTrans maintains the road.  But there are NUMEROUS cases where a road through a given town is maintained along one stretch by VTrans, and along another stretch by the town....hence the "State Highway Ends", "Through Way Begins Here", etc etc signs you see...those mark the change in maintenance responsibility.

yep, in St Albans there is a very old scallop-shaped "state highway ends" marker on US-7, so this arrangement must have been around for a long time now.  

I had thought a lot of towns were town-maintained; I've kinda grown oblivious to the Through Way Begins/Ends signs.  Yep, they're almost all embossed, despite most of them not being all that old.  Vermont still has an embossing press, as far as I know.  At least, there are "$500 fine for littering" block-font embossed signs, despite the fact that the fine was raised from $250 in the early 2000s.

Catch is, they were brand new.

how can you tell?  Prismatic high-intensity sheeting?

[shadyjay]

A couple notes here:

There are a handful of numbered routes in Vermont which are maintained solely by the towns (for their entire length) and not by the state.  While there are more, the two that stick out (because they are advertised on I-91 and I-89) are VT 121 (off I-91 Exit 5) and VT 131 (off I-89 Exit 2).  Both routes have their shields as ovals on new BGSs on the interstates.  All signage for VT 121 is the plain black/white circle/oval.  However, VT 131 has the circle/oval on the I-89 signage, but has the green Vermont shields on the exit ramp.  Several years ago I e-mailed VTrans (Vermont DOT) about why a new sign would have both the old and the new style of shield together on a new sign on the interstate and the response I got was because the circle/oval shield is used for town-maintained roads.  For those who haven't taken it, VT 121 is definetely a throwback road - narrow, dirt part of the way, has a double yellow line but no shoulder lines, etc.  Then there is VT 65, which runs through Brookfield, is a dirt road, and is severed in the middle due to the closure of the Brookfield Floating Bridge.  But I digress...

Second, the classic US 2/VT 100 shield in Waterbury has definitely been there longer than since 2006.  I moved to Waterbury in '06 and it was there.  I have been driving through that area though since the mid 90s and its been there since then, AT LEAST.  The most likely scenario is that the bolts needed replacement and instead of a new installation, new shiny bolts were put on.  Just past that shield going south/east is a pair of (not as old) US 2/VT 100 shields next to the railroad overpass, whose arrows have turned black.  And still further north/west on US 2, there's a very old black on white directional for the VT 100/US 2 split still in place with a funky I-89 shield.  This most likely dates to I-89's construction in the area. 

[agentsteel53]

Second, the classic US 2/VT 100 shield in Waterbury has definitely been there longer than since 2006.  I moved to Waterbury in '06 and it was there.  I have been driving through that area though since the mid 90s and its been there since then, AT LEAST.  The most likely scenario is that the bolts needed replacement and instead of a new installation, new shiny bolts were put on.  Just past that shield going south/east is a pair of (not as old) US 2/VT 100 shields next to the railroad overpass, whose arrows have turned black.  And still further north/west on US 2, there's a very old black on white directional for the VT 100/US 2 split still in place with a funky I-89 shield.  This most likely dates to I-89's construction in the area. 

I drove US-2 in June 2006 and it was not there.  I don't remember if there was any shield set in that location.  If there was, it was newer and I didn't pay much attention to it.  The white sign with the outline 89 shield has definitely been there the whole time.  I have a photo of it from June 2006.

[froggie]

when you say "completed to just north of the river", between which two points?  From north of Franconia Notch, to I-91?

Completed from I-91 to "just north of the river" (i.e. the Connecticut River...VT/NH border) in late 1982.  Completed from there to near Exit 43 north of Littleton ca. 1986.  From Littleton down to the Notch was much earlier...back in the '60s.

how can you tell?  Prismatic high-intensity sheeting?

That and the dates on the back.

[agentsteel53]

Completed from I-91 to "just north of the river" (i.e. the Connecticut River...VT/NH border) in late 1982.  Completed from there to near Exit 43 north of Littleton ca. 1986.  From Littleton down to the Notch was much earlier...back in the '60s.

gotcha.

That and the dates on the back.

dunno how much faith I put in dates on the back - they may be manufacturing or installation dates.  For instance, I've got a Missouri state route marker that is punched 1-32 (manufacturing) and rubber-stamped April 1947 (installation).  Some states have only one or the other.  New York, for instance, rubber-stamped the installation date on signs of clearly older specification.  I've seen 1-62 stamped onto an embossed US route marker.  It is not completely implausible that such a thing was stamped out in 1962, but I find it unlikely given the existence of flat printed shields with newer fonts, with earlier installation codes (including one from the same district, 9-51 in this case).

as for Vermont, I believe dates on the back are installation, because I have seen brand-new signs in construction zones with the current month and year on them.  That is either a quick manufacturing turnaround, or an installation date.

the use of prismatic sheeting (invented in 2006) is, however, a dead giveaway.

[Truvelo]

Here's the next batch of pictures.

Somewhere in the middle of Boston.


US-1 toll bridge. 15mph seems a little ridiculous and no one seemed to comply with it.


Portland, ME


I-93 south of the tunnel. Traffic is stationary heading out of Boston even though it was well before the evening rush hour.


Central Boston. I took this ramp by mistake but it turned into a good photo opportunity.

[hm insulators]

*facepalm*

I refuse to add such a thing to the shield gallery.

I don't blame you. The shield looks melted.

Looks like it was drawn by a little kid.