States "Mimicking" Other States

[Ian]

How many cases can you think of where state/county/town DOT's have "copied" other states by putting up their style of signage, etc? Here are a few examples of what I mean...

-California style "FREEWAY ENTRANCE" signs appearing on I-77 entrances in West Virginia

-Western US style "bent" traffic signal mast arms making their appearance in Maryland (and now becoming a state standard).

-NYSDOT style "top hat" sign showing up on I-95 southbound in Peabody, MA:
http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=peabody,+ma&aq=&sll=37.0625,-95.677068&sspn=39.047881,79.013672&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Peabody,+Essex,+Massachusetts&ll=42.545414,-70.982924&spn=0.004442,0.009645&t=h&z=17&layer=c&cbll=42.545723,-70.982727&panoid=e2hOSWkl9kV4qfM6CMnQRQ&cbp=12,196.35,,0,2.1

-Vermont copying New Hampshire's (or vise versa, not sure which state came up with the design first) "grooved shoulder" sign with the skidding motorcycle

-Massachusetts blank square designs popping up in Connecticut, and in the less common case, vise versa. Rhode Island also has a lot of MA shields around.

-Delaware using the Maryland style LANE ENDS sign with the double arrows.

[Quillz]

California-style "FREEWAY ENTRANCE" signs are also showing up in Oregon.

[NE2]

Wyoming copied Colorado's shape.

[agentsteel53]

Wyoming copied Colorado's shape.

not really.  Colorado is clearly hexagonal. 

[Michael]

-NYSDOT style "top hat" sign showing up on I-95 southbound in Peabody, MA:
http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=peabody,+ma&aq=&sll=37.0625,-95.677068&sspn=39.047881,79.013672&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Peabody,+Essex,+Massachusetts&ll=42.545414,-70.982924&spn=0.004442,0.009645&t=h&z=17&layer=c&cbll=42.545723,-70.982727&panoid=e2hOSWkl9kV4qfM6CMnQRQ&cbp=12,196.35,,0,2.1

I've only seen that used near the Tappan Zee Bridge,  so I'm thinking it might be a NYSTA thing.  EZ-Pass falls in that same category.

We can thank Pennsylvania for Clearview. (me) --> <-- (Pennsylvania)

[cu2010]

I've only seen that used near the Tappan Zee Bridge,  so I'm thinking it might be a NYSTA thing.

A similar sign exists along I-87 NB north of Albany with a control city of Montreal.

[Ian]

I've only seen that used near the Tappan Zee Bridge,  so I'm thinking it might be a NYSTA thing.

A similar sign exists along I-87 NB north of Albany with a control city of Montreal.

There is also one on I-787 SB in downtown Albany, as well as one on the Taconic State Parkway NB at Saw Mill River Parkway in Hawthorne.

Wyoming copied Colorado's shape.

[ctsignguy]

How many cases can you think of where state/county/town DOT's have "copied" other states by putting up their style of signage, etc? Here are a few examples of what I mean...

-Massachusetts blank square designs popping up in Connecticut, and in the less common case, vise versa. Rhode Island also has a lot of MA shields around.

Jeff admits that ConnDOT needs to be more consistent with route markers...i think what happens is one of the Signs and Lines in the field needs some replacement shields, and someone on the shop crew just grabs some blanks with the outlines (intended for "No Left/Right/U Turn signs) slaps a number on them, and ships them out...

[deathtopumpkins]

-Delaware using the Maryland style LANE ENDS sign with the double arrows.

These are popping up in Virginia now too. Can't remember exactly where, but I saw one on my last trip through the D.C. area (295 SB to 95 SB)

[froggie]

These are popping up in Virginia now too. Can't remember exactly where, but I saw one on my last trip through the D.C. area (295 SB to 95 SB)

I-95, I-66, VA 28, just to name a few.

[myosh_tino]

How about Pennsylvania mimicking California's style of numbering exits on guide signs...



*and*

[Ian]

These are popping up in Virginia now too. Can't remember exactly where, but I saw one on my last trip through the D.C. area (295 SB to 95 SB)

I-95, I-66, VA 28, just to name a few.

Now that you mention it, I do remember seeing one on I-95 southbound in Dumfries last April.

[J N Winkler]

How about Pennsylvania mimicking California's style of numbering exits on guide signs...

A lot of that has to do with both states using laminated-panel signs (which they have since the 1960's at least).

[thenetwork]

Back in the days when Trapezoids were in style, the Indiana Toll Road mimicked the Ohio Turnpike's "exit" BGSs.

[Scott5114]

I-240 in Oklahoma has a lot of Texas Turnarounds.

[roadfro]

-California style "FREEWAY ENTRANCE" signs appearing on I-77 entrances in West Virginia

This style of signing is prevalent in Nevada as well, since at least the mid 1980s. I imagine NDOT borrowed the concept from CalTrans back in the day...NDOT's "Freeway Entrance" sign is significantly smaller than what CalTrans uses, though.

[froggie]

A lot of that has to do with both states using laminated-panel signs (which they have since the 1960's at least).

Correct me if I'm wrong, but MnDOT also uses laminated-panel signs...and they still use separate exit tabs exclusively.

As does PennDOT for the most part.  The examples shown (and there's at least one or two more around Harrisburg) are to me the exceptions rather than the rule.

[PAHighways]

How about Pennsylvania mimicking California's style of numbering exits on guide signs...

That was more of a fluke than outright copying of another state.  When the Southern Expressway was built to provide access to the new Pittsburgh International Airport terminals, these guide signs and accompanying downward-facing lights appeared on it and the signage on PA 60 replaced from the southern Southern Expressway/Airport Parkway interchange to the US 22/US 30 cloverleaf.

[Quillz]

I wish more states would copy California and Virginia and use cutout route shields.

[architect77]

I wish Georgia WOULD copy any other state and get rid of those ridiculous elevated-shoulder substitutes for cantilevered signs, quit saying "EXIT 1 MILE" instead of just "1 MILE", put colored shield pavement markings where I-75/I-85 split on the Downtown Connector (Northbound) instead of using words to describe the split, and quit saying "3 LEFT LANES" when they should be saying "LEFT 3 LANES". Georgia always wants to reinvent the wheel rather than studying how other states do things.

[Scott5114]

quit saying "EXIT 1 MILE" instead of just "1 MILE",

What kind of highway are you seeing this on? "EXIT 1 MILE" is indeed the correct legend for unnumbered exits per MUTCD. For numbered exits, "1 MILE" is used because EXIT appears in the exit tab.

[J N Winkler]

What kind of highway are you seeing this on? "EXIT 1 MILE" is indeed the correct legend for unnumbered exits per MUTCD. For numbered exits, "1 MILE" is used because EXIT appears in the exit tab.

Architect77 is complaining about a distinctive approach to freeway signing which GDOT now seems to have abandoned.  This style is distinguished by mixed-case Series D legend at 20" UC/15" LC on overhead signs in lieu of 16" UC/12" LC Series E Modified, full-width exit tabs, and the word "EXIT" appearing redundantly both in the exit tab legend and the distance expression.  Before this style was rolled out sometime in the late 1980's/early 1990's, GDOT used button copy and sign formats were much more conventional with Series E Modified for primary destination legend and no repetition of "EXIT" on the main sign panel.  Indeed, when GDOT introduced exit numbering in the mid-1960's, many guide signs had to be retrofitted with exit tabs and GDOT went to considerable trouble to remove "EXIT" and recenter the distance expression on those signs.

For its current signing, GDOT is retaining the 20" UC/15" LC combination for primary destination legend on overhead guide signs, but is using Series E Modified instead of Series D.  Tabs are independent of the main sign panel and are no longer full-width--judging by the signing plans I have seen, GDOT has settled on a default width of 11'.  Redundant "EXIT" on the main sign panel is no longer used.  GDOT is still using the balanced cantilevers ("elevated-shoulder substitutes" as Architect77 calls them), and I think they are right to continue doing so because this prevents signs from being obscured by large trucks (which they can be if they are mounted on posts and truck traffic is heavy) while also making the sign structures less vulnerable to wind load.

GDOT has let four large signing contracts in the past year, all of which call for signs in the new style.  Sign design sheets so far total 120.  I suspect that GDOT has more signing contracts in the pipeline, but I don't read GDOT STIPs or letting schedules, so I cannot confirm either that this is the case or even that GDOT will be rolling out the new style across its entire freeway network.

[Brandon]

I wish more states would copy California and Virginia and use cutout route shields.

Illinois, Indiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, and Texas (primary, loops), pretty much do have cutouts.  Granted they're squares, but their route shields are squares. 

[codyg1985]

I wish Georgia WOULD copy any other state and get rid of those ridiculous elevated-shoulder substitutes for cantilevered signs...

This is a practice that Alabama has copied on some of the widened to six-lane portion of interstates. I-65 north of Birmingham, I-20/59 southwest of Birmingham, and I-65 north of Mobile has the elevated-shoulder mounted BGS.

[LeftyJR]

How about Pennsylvania mimicking California's style of numbering exits on guide signs...

That was more of a fluke than outright copying of another state.  When the Southern Expressway was built to provide access to the new Pittsburgh International Airport terminals, these guide signs and accompanying downward-facing lights appeared on it and the signage on PA 60 replaced from the southern Southern Expressway/Airport Parkway interchange to the US 22/US 30 cloverleaf.

Wasn't this done because of the proximity to the airport, so pilots wouldn't get confused?