Favorite state highway shields?

[Scott5114]

After you see it every day and get used to it, it actually works better than you'd think it would (the outline being so much thinner than the digits helps with that). It's certainly unique, though I don't think it's anywhere near as aesthetically pleasing as the CA or K shields.

[kphoger]

After you see it every day and get used to it, it actually works better than you'd think it would (the outline being so much thinner than the digits helps with that).

Yes, I have no issue with legibility.  Unlike Idaho's failure of a state-shaped route shield.



I also favor the Kansas route shield.  It manages to keep digit size fairly large, while still being obviously Kansas-related and also easily distinguished from other shield types–the latter two points being true even without the use of the state name.

Let's see, what states have shields that keep digit size fairly large, whose design is obviously related to that state, are easily distinguished from other shield types, and pull all of that off without the need for the state name?

AL – Halfway decent, but state outline attempt is rather grotesque.
AR – Similar to Alabama, but the state outline works better.
FL – Digits are too small, design looks half-finished.
GA – Similar to Arkansas.
KS – Definitely.
MO – Similar to Arkansas and Georgia.
NH – Pretty good, but too much like a plain square to be obviously New Hampshire.
NY – Good in theory, it's not obvious what the shape is supposed to represent.
OH – Similar to all the other decent state outline states.
OK – Barely better than Florida.
PA – Very good, especially considering it's just black and white.
SD – Not terrible, but black digits with green outline looks weird to me.
UT – Digits way too small.
WA – See Utah.

[Ben114]

NH – Pretty good, but too much like a plain square to be obviously New Hampshire.

NH doesn't have a good shield for three-digit routes. Too narrow digits.

[kphoger]

NH – Pretty good, but too much like a plain square to be obviously New Hampshire.

NH doesn't have a good shield for three-digit routes. Too narrow digits.

True, good point.

[ethanhopkin14]

They should just go with the elegant shield they already use for toll highways.

That actually looks nice, but they would have to do a statewide resigning project.  I take one look at that shield and automatically associate it with a toll road. 

Another thing about the Texas toll shield, sometimes its white numerals on a blue field and other times its blue numerals on a white field.  Both are seen on a single route so it's not this route gets blue and the other gets white.  Its just sloppy and inconsistent, and another reason for me to get all mad and demand SH-130 be removed in favor of I-435

[kphoger]

Another thing about the Texas toll shield, sometimes its white numerals on a blue field and other times its blue numerals on a white field.  Both are seen on a single route so it's not this route gets blue and the other gets white.  Its just sloppy and inconsistent, and another reason for me to get all mad and demand SH-130 be removed in favor of I-435

Maybe you'll like this better, then.

[ethanhopkin14]

Another thing about the Texas toll shield, sometimes its white numerals on a blue field and other times its blue numerals on a white field.  Both are seen on a single route so it's not this route gets blue and the other gets white.  Its just sloppy and inconsistent, and another reason for me to get all mad and demand SH-130 be removed in favor of I-435

Maybe you'll like this better, then.

Much better

[hobsini2]

WI loses. Rectangle over triangle?

Be more creative!

More creative than the boring squares, diamonds and circles of some states.

[hobsini2]

They should just go with the elegant shield they already use for toll highways.

100 % AGREE! At least the FM Roads are nice.

[hobsini2]

My personal preference is the use of the state outline, the name or abbreviation, unique design and color. The more combinations, the better. Odd shapes are ok. Squares, Triangles, Circles and Diamonds are boring.
Love:
AK, AZ, CA, CO, KS, MN, NM, WY
Like:
AL, AR, FL, GA, ID (OLD), LA, MO, NE, NV, ND (NEW & OLD), PA, SC, SD, TN, TX (TOLL & FM ROADS), UT,
Ok:
HI, ID (NEW), MI, NH, NC, NY, OH, OK, VT, WA, WI
Dislike:
IL, IN, MD, MT, OR, RI, TX (STANDARD), VA
Hate (None of my criteria met):
CT, DE, IA, KY, ME, MA, NJ, WV

[Flint1979]

Michigan.

[Scott5114]

After you see it every day and get used to it, it actually works better than you'd think it would (the outline being so much thinner than the digits helps with that).

Yes, I have no issue with legibility.  Unlike Idaho's failure of a state-shaped route shield.



I also favor the Kansas route shield.  It manages to keep digit size fairly large, while still being obviously Kansas-related and also easily distinguished from other shield types–the latter two points being true even without the use of the state name.

Let's see, what states have shields that keep digit size fairly large, whose design is obviously related to that state, are easily distinguished from other shield types, and pull all of that off without the need for the state name?

AL – Halfway decent, but state outline attempt is rather grotesque.
[...]

I know it's probably omitted because it includes the state name (though it's not really integral to the shield design), but I prefer to think this list simply refuses to dignify AZ as even being an attempt at a state outline.

[STLmapboy]

Code Select Expand


Bad
Missouri


Your opinion is wrong.
My favorite is probably the old ND one with the Indian guy before they put the boring state shape one. CA, UT, and anything remotely triangular are also up there. Non-square state shapes (even MO) will always win out over regular squares and circles, even if the state in question is LA or ID.

Surprised that Nebraska and the MT secondary shield haven't specifically been mentioned yet.

[CtrlAltDel]

Code Select Expand


Bad
Missouri


Your opinion is wrong.

Well, that settles that.

[hotdogPi]

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Bad
Missouri


Your opinion is wrong.

Well, that settles that.

By definition, opinions cannot be wrong.

Also: Bad Missouri: is this the name of a German spa town?

[bing101]

Hawaii and California are my favorites because they use spade shaped shields.
Note Hawaii state routes are called the drop shields

[STLmapboy]

Code Select Expand


Bad
Missouri


Your opinion is wrong.

Well, that settles that.

By definition, opinions cannot be wrong.

Also: Bad Missouri: is this the name of a German spa town?

Well CtrlAltDel's feeling about MO shields is Bad Kategorisierung.

[Rothman]

FL and VT are really good.

Add CT and RI to that boring list.

For some reason, RI's instill a hatred within me.  They're awful to my eyes -- worst out of the 50.

[Scott5114]

Maybe it's because they have a wide-open blank and six different fonts to be able to spell out "RHODE ISLAND" and they still just go with "R.I."?

[oscar]

Hawaii and California are my favorites because they use spade shaped shields.
Note Hawaii state routes are called the drop shields

When they were invented during World War II, for the temporary wartime route numbering system on Oahu (because farmboys stationed there from Nebraska just couldn't deal with unnumbered roads signed with hard-to-pronounce Hawaiian names), they were officially described as "teardrop" markers.

Kind of truth in advertising. Hawaiian tourist brochures usually don't highlight how much it rains there, especially on the windward (eastern, at that latitude) shores.

[corco]

Maybe it's because they have a wide-open blank and six different fonts to be able to spell out "RHODE ISLAND" and they still just go with "R.I."?

Why abbreviate it as "Rhode Island"?



Much better.

[Thing 342]

Went state-by-state with my opinions. YMMV here.

Alabama
+: State outline w/ full-height numbers
-: Outline doesn't look that much like the state, wide variant of shield can get crowded.
Grade: B

Alaska
+: Iconography, state name, legible
-: None (unless they start adding 3ds)
Grade: A

Arizona
+: State name and outline, full-height numbers
-: Not a fan of wide variant
Grade: A-

Arkansas
+: State outline, scales well to 3ds
-: Use of series B even on 2-digit routes
Grade: A-

California
+: State name, design simplicity, color, cutout
-: None
Grade: A

Colorado
+: Color, state iconography, no wide variant
-: Numbers are a bit small and top half is sorta busy for my tastes
Grade: A-

Connecticut
+: Heavy outlines look better
-: Generic square, use of series B on 3ds
Grade: C+

Delaware
+/-: Circle shield
Grade: C-

District of Columbia
+: Outline, abbreviation, weird aspect ratio
-: Not sure how well this design would work on other routes, numbers somewhat small
Grade: A-

Florida
+: State outline, scales well to 3 or even 4 digits
-: Numbers are fairly small, I wonder how the gulf coast feels about getting cut out of the shield
Grade: A-

Georgia
+: State outline, scales fairly well to 3 digits
-: None
Grade: A

Hawaii
+: Unique shape, can fit 4 digits without wide variant
-: Numbers can get pretty tiny
Grade: B

Idaho (2020 redesign)
+: State outline
-: Zero outline, removal of state name, no outline, so numbers are pushed right up against the edge of the shield, looks bad in positive contrast
Grade: D-

Illinois
+: State name; numbers in scale with rest of design, giving room for state name to breathe; use of series D throughout
-: Generic square
Grade: B-

Indiana
+: State name
-: Generic square, numbers are too big and crowd rest of design, especially on routes 200+, state name too small
Grade: C-

Iowa
+: Used to use only the normal circle shield, which is my preference (even if numbers were squeezed in). Now use the elongated one for 3ds, which is still better than the oval.
-: Generic circle shield.
Grade: C

Kansas
+: State iconography, use of color
-: Some contrast issues with the numbers, wide shield looks bad
Grade: B

Kentucky
+: Uses elongated version of circle shield
-: Generic circle shield
Grade: C

Louisiana
+: State outline and abbreviation
-: Preferred white-on-green version, numbers are very small, use of series B even on 2d routes.
Grade: B+

Maine
+/-: Generic square / rectangle.
Grade: C

Maryland
+: State name, like the use of bar to divide up the space while keeping the numbers fairly large
-: A bit generic, could use some padding on the state name
Grade: B+

Massachusetts
+/-: Generic square / rectangle.
Grade: C

Michigan
+: Unique shape, 'M' logo
-: Logo crowds shield, numbers are small, prefer rounded edges of NC's version, wide variant looks bad
Grade: B-

Minnesota
+: Good use of color; state name and outline that don't take over design, good wide variant
-: Can be a bit too similar to interstate numbers
Grade: A-

Mississippi
+: None
-: Generic circle shield, uses oval
Grade: C-

Missouri
+: State outline, good-looking wide variant
-: Numbers need more space to breathe
Grade: A-

Montana
+: State name, heavy outline to give contrast
-: Generic square/rectangle.
Grade: B-

Nebraska
+: Unique shape, state name
-: Wagon design is too detailed and not really legible, state name should be taller, corners should be rounded a bit
Grade: B

Nevada
+: State name and outline, no wide variant, cute compact design
-: Teeny tiny numbers, even on 2ds, too much black space.
Grade: B-

New Hampshire
+: State iconography
-: Design element is probably too subtle for a shield (and no longer exists, anyway), needs a wide variant
Grade: B-

New Jersey
+: None
-: Generic circle shield, uses oval
Grade: C-

New Mexico
+: Attempt at color and iconography
-: Zia symbol crowds the shield and doesn't physically age well, numbers are fairly small
Grade: B-

New York
+: Unique shape, state iconography (I guess)
-: Prefer the wider variant, could use some more outline on the sides
Grade: B+

North Carolina
+: Unique shape, clean design
-: Tiny numbers, kinda generic
Grade: B+

North Dakota
+: State outline and name, can hold 4 digits
-: The projection used for the outline makes everything look trapezoidal and weird, design feels somewhat crowded and numbers could use more space. Plus, the state outline isn't really recognizable enough to work anyway.
Grade: C

Ohio
+: State outline with unique shape, good looking wide variant
-: None
Grade: A

Oklahoma
+: State outline, good wide variant
-: Overlap is kind of annoying to template on Inkscape, use of series B on 3ds
Grade: A-

Oregon
+: Unique shape, clean design
-: Generic, wide variant looks weird and bloated
Grade: B-

Pennsylvania
+: Unique state iconography, recognizable shape
-: Numbers should be a wee bit smaller and pulled downwards a touch.
Grade: A

Rhode Island
+: State abbreviation
-: Generic rectangle, why can't they write the name out?
Grade: C

South Carolina
+: State name, outline, and iconography, plus color
-: None
Grade A

South Dakota
+: State outline, use of color, can fit 4 digits
-: Projection of state outline causes weirdness, should get rid of the normal variant and only use the wide one.
Grade: A-

Tennessee
+: State name and outline, custom font
-: None
Grade: A

Texas
+: Heavy outline, state name, uses series D consistently
-: Generic square, numbers are sort of small
Grade: B

Utah
+: Unique shape and iconography, like the white outline around the beehive, wide variant looks good
-: Difficult to squeeze all of the numbers in there, so they're pretty small.
Grade: A-

Vermont
+: State name, use of color, good wide variant
-: Not sure the sliced circle design totally works for me, maybe an elongated circle would look better.
Grade: B

Virginia
+: Unique shape, good wide variant
-: Semi-generic, not much to discuss
Grade: B

Washington
+: State iconography, unique shape
-: Using a person's head looks weird, and numbers have to be crammed in in order to fit well.
Grade: B

West Virginia
+: Heavy outlines, clean rounded eges
-: Generic square/rectangle
Grade: C+

Wisconsin
+: Unique shape, recognizable design (sort of)
-: could use some more black space around the middle, needs a wide variant
Grade: B+

Wyoming
+: Use of colors, state name and iconography
-: State name could be a little smaller, numbers could be bigger
Grade: A-

I would say that my favorite is Ohio or South Carolina and my least favorite is Idaho's new design.

[JayhawkCO]

In my opinion, the three best are the states I've lived longest in: Colorado, Kansas, and Minnesota.  The other two states that I've lived in, Florida and Washington, aren't bad.  Colorado and Minnesota also happen to have some of the best license plates.

Chris

[DandyDan]

One of the few things I liked about living in Nebraska was its state highway shield. It is a trapezoid with a wagon at the bottom. Not sure how they could improve on that. I also like Minnesota's shield because of the blue and gold combo. The one negative is that old signs look old and wore out.

The worst, at least among states I've been in, is Indiana. It looks like they ripped off Illinois, which is a boring design, and gave it big numbers, which makes the whole thing ugly.

[Ned Weasel]

Kansas
+: State iconography, use of color
-: Some contrast issues with the numbers, wide shield looks bad
Grade: B

The wide shield is just a fat sunflower.