Cryptic word messages on traffic signs

[kphoger]

What the heck is a "Trafficway"?

Wow.  Having had relatives in KC my whole life, I never thought anything of the word Trafficway.  I can see how the abbreviation would perplex someone, though....

[agentsteel53]

Wow.  Having had relatives in KC my whole life, I never thought anything of the word Trafficway.  I can see how the abbreviation would perplex someone, though....

it sounds like a terrible thing which I'd like to avoid!

[Roadsguy]

To me "Bkn." would have suggested either "Broken" or "Brooklyn."

Bacon? When I got a first glance of that post scrolling down, I thought I actually saw the full word "bacon."

[vtk]

What the heck is a "Trafficway"?

Someone who has between 100 and 199 posts on this forum?

[theline]

To me "Bkn." would have suggested either "Broken" or "Brooklyn."

Bacon? When I got a first glance of that post scrolling down, I thought I actually saw the full word "bacon."

I can look at nearly anything and see bacon.

[empirestate]

First time I visited California, it took me forever to realize what "Cyn" meant. I didn't at first realize it was an abbreviation!

[agentsteel53]

First time I visited California, it took me forever to realize what "Cyn" meant. I didn't at first realize it was an abbreviation!

me too - it took me about two years of living there.  I thought it was just some kind of obscure word, possibly Spanish.

[1995hoo]

I still haven't heard a good description of what sort of road a "trafficway" is. Arterial boulevard? Freeway? Jersey freeway? Something else?

If I saw "Cyn" I'd normally interpret it as a nickname for "Cynthia." What does it mean on a road sign? Like "trafficway," it's not something I've ever seen.

[empirestate]

If I saw "Cyn" I'd normally interpret it as a nickname for "Cynthia." What does it mean on a road sign? Like "trafficway," it's not something I've ever seen.

It's short for "Canyon", a word that appears in many California street names.

A similarly region-specific example is "Gd" in Michigan...

[Alps]

Someone explain what a Tkpe is?

[CentralCAroadgeek]

Seen by me in Pacific Grove last weekend:

End Tour Bus Parking
No Parking From Here Until Point Lobos

Pretty sure it was no parking for the bus since there were cars parked ahead of the sign, but the sign didn't specify. Really confused the heck out of us, so we parked elsewhere.

Another lousy job by the Monterey County sign shop.

[Takumi]

Someone explain what a Tkpe is?

Take pee? Especially with all the beers you seem to have had tonight.

[Alps]

Someone explain what a Tkpe is?

Take pee? Especially with all the beers you seem to have had tonight.

hehyyynoyw thatssss'not faiiirri

[vtk]

Someone explain what a Tkpe is?

Reminds me of Msrg Reynolds Way.

[Special K]

I still haven't heard a good description of what sort of road a "trafficway" is. Arterial boulevard? Freeway? Jersey freeway? Something else?

As far as I can tell, it's a major arterial street designed for through traffic to move from one section of the city to another.  Left turns are largely prohibited along these streets.

[Special K]

If I saw "Cyn" I'd normally interpret it as a nickname for "Cynthia." What does it mean on a road sign? Like "trafficway," it's not something I've ever seen.

It's short for "Canyon", a word that appears in many California street names.

A similarly region-specific example is "Gd" in Michigan...

God's in Michigan and he has a sign?

[1995hoo]

If I saw "Cyn" I'd normally interpret it as a nickname for "Cynthia." What does it mean on a road sign? Like "trafficway," it's not something I've ever seen.

It's short for "Canyon", a word that appears in many California street names.

A similarly region-specific example is "Gd" in Michigan...

God's in Michigan and he has a sign?

After living in the South for a few years in the 1990s, I interpret "gd" as a profanity because people there use it as such (short for "goddamn").

[Scott5114]

A trafficway in Kansas City is just another term for an arterial boulevard. It substitutes for Street or Avenue or whatever (except in the case of 7th Street Trafficway). Seems to connote a particularly impressive arterial.

Another Kansas Cityism: median approach signage for Shawnee Mission Parkway abbreviates it as "Sh Mn Pky".

[Roadsguy]

I still haven't heard a good description of what sort of road a "trafficway" is. Arterial boulevard? Freeway? Jersey freeway? Something else?

As far as I can tell, it's a major arterial street designed for through traffic to move from one section of the city to another.  Left turns are largely prohibited along these streets.

So it is a Jersey Freeway! (more or less)

[NE2]

Not at all. A Jersey freeway has no cross traffic at all.

[J N Winkler]

"Trafficway" is a generic term for a high-type road--it isn't really restricted to a particular category of road and it is actually a regional term, not purely a Kansas Cityism.  Greater Kansas City has a number of Trafficways which are signalized surface arterials, while around Lawrence the proposed South Lawrence Trafficway is a full freeway.  Topeka (50 miles west of Kansas City) has Trafficways too.  I think "Trafficway" is primarily a northeast Kansas/Kansas City term because it seems to have penetrated a much smaller distance east of the state line.

The 7th Street Trafficway in Kansas City, Kansas has signalized intersections where left turns are permitted, BTW.

[StogieGuy7]

If I saw "Cyn" I'd normally interpret it as a nickname for "Cynthia." What does it mean on a road sign? Like "trafficway," it's not something I've ever seen.

That's funny because I never had any trouble with "Cyn" for Canyon.  Of course, other states abbreviate it as "Can", but "Cyn" always made perfect sense to me for some reason.

A similarly region-specific example is "Gd" in Michigan...

That one never fails to crack me up!  "God Damn Rapids" is all I can think of when I see MI guide signs along I-96 or I-196!  Seriously.

Someone explain what a Tkpe is?

This one looks like "Orange Turnpike", missing the "a".  "Tpke" is a pretty obvious abbreviation for Turnpike.  That or "Tpk" are really the only ways that you could reasonably abbreviate the word.    Again, that's a lot easier to decipher than "T(u)rfway"!!

[1995hoo]

If I saw "Cyn" I'd normally interpret it as a nickname for "Cynthia." What does it mean on a road sign? Like "trafficway," it's not something I've ever seen.

That's funny because I never had any trouble with "Cyn" for Canyon.  Of course, other states abbreviate it as "Can", but "Cyn" always made perfect sense to me for some reason.

Well, as I said, I've never seen it. I live on the East Coast and have for almost my entire life; the one exception (a year in Texas) was when I was born, so I understandably don't remember it too well! We don't have canyons on the East Coast unless you count Breaks Interstate Park down in Southwest Virginia/southeastern Kentucky (but I have never been there anyway). The only time I've encountered a road with "Canyon" in the name was around Waimea Canyon on Kauai and I simply do not recall the signs because my focus was on the scenery. It may well be that when seen in context, a sign with "Cyn" for "Canyon" might be perfectly obvious in its meaning, but if you've never seen one, you can't comment, right?

Someone explain what a Tkpe is?

This one looks like "Orange Turnpike", missing the "a".  "Tpke" is a pretty obvious abbreviation for Turnpike.  That or "Tpk" are really the only ways that you could reasonably abbreviate the word.    Again, that's a lot easier to decipher than "T(u)rfway"!!

I believe he was making fun of the typo in "Tkpe" (note the reversal of the "p" and the "k").

I've seen "Turnpike" abbreviated as "Tpke," "Tnpk," "Trpk," and "Trnpk," all on various signs within about a five-mile radius here in Northern Virginia. They refer to Little River Turnpike. Once upon a time the BGSs typically used "Tnpk" and the street sign blades used "Tpke," but lately it's varied a bit more. "Trpk" is unique to one sign on I-395. It's a strange abbreviation, but I suppose it's still reasonably clear what it means....although I guess I'm not the best person to say because I've lived here for almost 40 years and so of course I know the road's name.

[J N Winkler]

I've seen "Turnpike" abbreviated as "Tpke," "Tnpk," "Trpk," and "Trnpk," all on various signs within about a five-mile radius here in Northern Virginia. They refer to Little River Turnpike. Once upon a time the BGSs typically used "Tnpk" and the street sign blades used "Tpke," but lately it's varied a bit more. "Trpk" is unique to one sign on I-395. It's a strange abbreviation, but I suppose it's still reasonably clear what it means....although I guess I'm not the best person to say because I've lived here for almost 40 years and so of course I know the road's name.

I am not particularly fond of any of these abbreviations--here we use "Tpk" (one more letter saved compared to any of the examples used in northern Virginia, and still unambiguous and easily understood).

[StogieGuy7]

It may well be that when seen in context, a sign with "Cyn" for "Canyon" might be perfectly obvious in its meaning, but if you've never seen one, you can't comment, right?

No offense intended, I was simply stating that it seemed intuitive to me.

I believe he was making fun of the typo in "Tkpe" (note the reversal of the "p" and the "k").

LOL!!  My brain actually corrected it for me and I never noticed that it was "Tkpe"!  Good one!  Oh well, I guess I understood what they were trying to say......

I've seen "Turnpike" abbreviated as "Tpke," "Tnpk," "Trpk," and "Trnpk," all on various signs within about a five-mile radius here in Northern Virginia. They refer to Little River Turnpike. Once upon a time the BGSs typically used "Tnpk" and the street sign blades used "Tpke," but lately it's varied a bit more. "Trpk" is unique to one sign on I-395. It's a strange abbreviation, but I suppose it's still reasonably clear what it means....although I guess I'm not the best person to say because I've lived here for almost 40 years and so of course I know the road's name.

I've seen them all too, though "Tpk" and "Tpke" seem to be the most common over the widest area.  I actually lived in your area too when I was a kid, so I am familiar with Little River Turnpike (and the Richmond-Petersburg Turnpike)!