VMSes better off left off

[Mr. Matté]

A lot of people here tend to agree that DOTs tend to put stupid or pointless messages on variable message signs such as "Wear Your Seat Belt" and "Thanksgiving - Expect Delays" which leads drivers to ignore them when they have something useful or important displayed. What are some of the dumbest things you've seen displayed on a VMS?


I've seen the NJ Turnpike Authority show off their new color VMSes showing something along the lines of "EZ-PASS available at next service area" even though there is a permanent sign displaying the exact same thing closer to the plaza.

A portable VMS (with dayglo flippy dots rather than LEDs) shows up at random times on Route 18 congratulating some team at their middle school for beating another team or for leaf pickup even though probably most of the people in the area where that sign shows up either are commuters passing through or Rutgers students who don't deal with leaves. However, when Chris Christie held one of his town hall events in Piscataway, that sign showed up outside the event displaying some political protest against him. At first, I thought the town owned the sign but I don't think the town would be allowed to make such a statement like that (either for or against). If it is indeed privately owned, are they allowed to masquerade an official-looking device to help motorists as a form of protest? I know there's free speech but that doesn't mean I can go out and display my opinion on something looking like e.g., a regulatory sign.

[US71]

A lot of people here tend to agree that DOTs tend to put stupid or pointless messages on variable message signs such as "Wear Your Seat Belt" and "Thanksgiving - Expect Delays" which leads drivers to ignore them when they have something useful or important displayed. What are some of the dumbest things you've seen displayed on a VMS?

I-44 in Missouri has permanent signs every few miles with some sort of message like
WATCH FOR MOTORCYCLES
MODOT CARES

Or
FOR TRAVEL INFORMATION
CALL 1-800-MODOT

Some of the US and State Routes have what appear to be temporary signs that have * usually alternating between the left and right side of the sign.

[kphoger]

At first, I thought the town owned the sign but I don't think the town would be allowed to make such a statement like that (either for or against). If it is indeed privately owned, are they allowed to masquerade an official-looking device to help motorists as a form of protest? I know there's free speech but that doesn't mean I can go out and display my opinion on something looking like e.g., a regulatory sign.

What about it made it look official?  I'd say its existence on the planet doesn't count.  If someone put it in a location where it's legal to put a sign, then there you go.

[agentsteel53]

any horseshit by the department of Homeland Security.  Maryland is notorious for this.

[mcdonaat]

Adopt the Louisiana style for VMS signs - ALWAYS post travel times from point A to the exit. It comes in handy, especially when traffic is always delayed somewhere in the city. My commute in always has the travel time to my exit, and the signs are never turned off. But at least they display useful information. This morning had "10E to Essen - 6 MI, 42 MIN. USE 110N TO AIRLINE." Guess who found an alternate route!

[Takumi]

Maryland is notorious for this.

REPORT SUSPICIOUS ACTIVITY. CALL 301-SQUEALER

[kphoger]

any horseshit by the department of Homeland Security.  Maryland is notorious for this.

Report terrorists.  MDOT cares.

[on_wisconsin]

WisDOT usually turns them off or leaves traffic times up 24/7:
FREEWAY TIME TO
WIS 30        9 MIN
US 12/18   13 MIN

[Brandon]

Adopt the Louisiana style for VMS signs - ALWAYS post travel times from point A to the exit. It comes in handy, especially when traffic is always delayed somewhere in the city. My commute in always has the travel time to my exit, and the signs are never turned off. But at least they display useful information. This morning had "10E to Essen - 6 MI, 42 MIN. USE 110N TO AIRLINE." Guess who found an alternate route!

That's what ISTHA does as well.  They post the travel times, even in rural areas along I-88 and I-90 alternating with a message (typically related to the Tollway i.e. "UPDATE I-PASS INFO ONLINE").

IDOT on the other hand, posts travel times on some VMSs, but never does on others.  Their VMSs on Nbd I-55 between US-6 and I-80, and between US-52 and US-30 would be better off as the messages are the inane "WATCH FOR MOTORCYCLES" or "CLICK IT OR TICKET" crap-type messages.

Then there are ones that IDOT has that I never see on, such as near Bloomington.  InDOT never seems to use its either in the Calumet Region.

[roadfro]

NDOT in the Reno area was getting bad about this, putting up the public safety messages such as "Click It or Ticket", "Buckle Up, It's The Law", or similar. Now that they're getting ITS infrastructure in place to have more active monitoring of travel conditions on the freeways, they're testing travel time information.

[Scott5114]

A portable VMS (with dayglo flippy dots rather than LEDs) shows up at random times on Route 18 congratulating some team at their middle school for beating another team or for leaf pickup even though probably most of the people in the area where that sign shows up either are commuters passing through or Rutgers students who don't deal with leaves. However, when Chris Christie held one of his town hall events in Piscataway, that sign showed up outside the event displaying some political protest against him. At first, I thought the town owned the sign but I don't think the town would be allowed to make such a statement like that (either for or against). If it is indeed privately owned, are they allowed to masquerade an official-looking device to help motorists as a form of protest? I know there's free speech but that doesn't mean I can go out and display my opinion on something looking like e.g., a regulatory sign.

A Ferranti-Packard display as a VMS? Really? I thought they all used LEDs these days. What's it look like at night?

I've seen portable VMSes in private hands before, directing people to events, and I've seen them at least once displaying some sort of commercial message. Could be sort of annoying/misleading, considering they look exactly the same as standard issue DOT VMSes.

Oklahoma DOT tends to leave its VMSes off, although sometimes you will see "OZONE ALERT IN EFFECT - SHARE A RIDE" or something like that which strikes me as odd since you aren't going to suddenly decide to carpool after driving past a VMS on I-35 at 65 mph.

[roadman65]

FDOT loves to use the "CLICK IT OR TICKET" or some other things like travel times to an interchange that is only a mile away I have seen.

[mukade]

InDOT never seems to use its either in the Calumet Region.

The ones in Indy seemed to be used to warn of accidents and construction only so they are not usually on. Travel times are on dedicated signs in Indy - when they're working.

 

Kokomo even got two VMSes on US 31 (the existing non-freeway one), and are these used mainly for Amber alerts or construction warnings. In that same project that brought VMS, US 31 got the blue .2 mile enhanced mile markers. From the INDOT plans, the new freeway will neither have the VMSes nor the enhanced mile markers.

[roadman]

Most irrelevant message I've ever seen on a VMS - the Mass. Turnpike Authority used to post "GO PATRIOTS" on their boards in the mid-2000s when the Pats were in the playoffs.

Adopt the Louisiana style for VMS signs - ALWAYS post travel times from point A to the exit. It comes in handy, especially when traffic is always delayed somewhere in the city. My commute in always has the travel time to my exit, and the signs are never turned off. But at least they display useful information. This morning had "10E to Essen - 6 MI, 42 MIN. USE 110N TO AIRLINE." Guess who found an alternate route!

Then when there's a serious crash or other issue that requires posting a message that needs the driver's immediate attention, I wonder how many who drive that road everyday will just ignore the "urgent" message because they've passed those VMS panels everyday and have gotten de-sensitized because there's always a message on the panels.

Most states don't display the "nanny" or other irrelevant messages on their VMS panels 24/7/365 like travel times are usually displayed, so this "hash" is a less of a problem in states where VMSes aren't used for travel times.

[mcdonaat]

Travel times are the bread and butter of Louisiana. On ALL federal routes into Baton Rouge (I-12, I-10, US 61, US 190), overhead signs are being installed for traffic advisories only. No nanny-state stuff here, just the information the drivers need to know. Also, they're located on lanes going out of the city, advising alternate routes for wrecks on key bridges, like the Basin Bridge. Plus, we have about 5,000 smaller signs saying to buckle up or not to drink and drive.

[hbelkins]

On ALL federal routes...

[NE2]

So, H.B., what adjective would you use to describe Interstate and U.S. Routes?

[PurdueBill]

So, H.B., what adjective would you use to describe Interstate and U.S. Routes?

I'd call them "Interstate and U.S. Routes" myself.  "Federal routes" reminds me of you-know-who (that viatologist or whatever the hell he calls himself).

[mcdonaat]

Hahaha my bad... I refer to them as federal routes because the federal government gives us money to help upkeep em. I'll refer to them as Interstate and U.S. Highways, since I don't have any idea what a viatologist is.

[PurdueBill]

Hahaha my bad... I refer to them as federal routes because the federal government gives us money to help upkeep em. I'll refer to them as Interstate and U.S. Highways, since I don't have any idea what a viatologist is.

Trust me, it's much better to not know what that so-called term is anyway.    (A certain person on m.t.r spams it with his web site about the topic, a term he coined that only he uses...it's actually quite entertaining in a way.)

[mcdonaat]

I'm a signatologist, making the LaDOTD mad with my emails about using the wrong FHWA font on the signs.

[NE2]

Hahaha my bad... I refer to them as federal routes because the federal government gives us money to help upkeep em.

That's a bad reason, since feddybux go towards all National Highway System roads (which doesn't include all U.S. Routes, and includes some state highways).

[roadfro]

A portable VMS (with dayglo flippy dots rather than LEDs) shows up at random times on Route 18 <...>

A Ferranti-Packard display as a VMS? Really? I thought they all used LEDs these days. What's it look like at night?

Older portable VMS units tended to be of the flip-dot variety, with the "on" dots in the message usually being yellow or fluorescent yellow-green in color--some also include a small orange-ish LED light behind each dot that comes on with the dot is to display.

These types of VMS can be easily distinguished by the display dots slowly changing left to right between sign messages, and by the fact that inevitably certain dots in the message get stuck in the on position.

An example found on Google Images

[hbelkins]

Hahaha my bad... I refer to them as federal routes because the federal government gives us money to help upkeep em.

That's a bad reason, since feddybux go towards all National Highway System roads (which doesn't include all U.S. Routes, and includes some state highways).

Not only that, but the federal bridge replacement program helps pay for replacement of substandard bridges on state routes that aren't part of the NHS.

[agentsteel53]

"interstate and US routes" is clunky.  I use "federal routes" to refer as a blanket term to the two route systems with numbers that intentionally remain the same while crossing state lines.