Largest wastes of overhead assemblies?

[cpzilliacus]

There are two others north of Baltimore.  One after exit 64 (I-695) listing Philadelphia at 92 miles, and another one about 15 miles north of there listing Philadelphia at 74 miles. 

Forgot about your comment above until now. 

After reading it, I had a chance to drive I-95 all the way from south of Baltimore to Exit 109, and the signs you mention (with Philadelphia) above are now gone, the one north of Exit 64 probably falling victim to the MdTA's Express Toll Lanes project. 

[amroad17]

Shame.

[cpzilliacus]

Shame.

If you mean that Maryland should be ashamed about not posting miles to Philadelphia along I-95 being a shame, then I agree with you.  Between Baltimore and the Delaware line, the MdTA should (IMO) show miles to Wilmington, Del., Philadelphia and New York, perhaps alternating them with local destinations like Edgewood, Aberdeen, Havre de Grace, Perryville, North East, Elkton and Newark, Del. (I like three cities).

Between Washington and Baltimore, it should use Baltimore, Philly and New York.

[Mr. Matté]

This could probably be filed under both waste of overhead gantry and waste of sign metal/space:

https://maps.google.com/maps?q=http:%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fw%2Findex.php%3Ftitle%3DTemplate:Attached_KML%2FInterstate_95_in_Georgia%26action%3Draw&ll=31.28662,-81.486111&spn=0.116185,0.222988&t=h&z=13&layer=c&cbll=31.287137,-81.485948&panoid=Ftyk8wiamZraStbwRabzgw&cbp=12,20.58,,0,0.21

[Sanctimoniously]

Did that exit have information for the Kings Bay nuclear submarine base that was greened out?

[CentralCAroadgeek]

How about a waste of an entire sign...?



Found on US-101 south around the I-380 interchange.

[TheStranger]

How about a waste of an entire sign...?

I think that exists because that used to be the path for the southbound ramp to the airport (now replaced with a ramp further back that covers San Bruno Avenue as well).

[Takumi]

Yeah, there was one like that on I-64 westbound in 2009.

[Urban Prairie Schooner]

Noticing on a few freeway expansion projects that were cancelled that the overhead assemblies remain, even if it's spanning four lanes, and it has one tiny sign on it. Examples below:
New Orleans - you can only exit, since no expressway continues straight. http://goo.gl/maps/N3xl

The Earhart Expressway gantry was added long after the freeway was built in the area. For at least the first twenty years of its life Earhart had small sized ground level signage that barely qualified as highway quality.

[Scott5114]

There's a few blank signs floating around Kansas City, KS due to KDOT's former standard of demountable copy. Signs are frequently blanked during construction rather than tarping them like many states do.

[Alps]

There are blank signs around Montreal that no one has identified.

[Some_Person]

I-95 S at FL 528 http://goo.gl/maps/HIBUb

[roadfro]

^ Wow, that one is really bad. They could have easily made that sign bridge only traverse one direction...

[roadman]

^ Wow, that one is really bad. They could have easily made that sign bridge only traverse one direction...

Or install a "double panel" cantilever support, which has recently become a common practice in New Hampshire and Massachusetts.

[lordsutch]

The Earhart Expressway gantry was added long after the freeway was built in the area. For at least the first twenty years of its life Earhart had small sized ground level signage that barely qualified as highway quality.

And, in fairness, there are active plans in the New Orleans LRTP to extend Earhart west to cross the railway tracks and connect to US 61.

[theline]

There are many such assemblies as these along about 8 miles of SR-67, southwest of Muncie, IN. They exist mainly to indicate where the center turn lane stops and starts. As well as the assemblies, center turn lanes are also wasted, with many miles of turn lanes with no where to turn to, as seen here.


I can only assume that INDOT was wildly overoptimistic about the business development along this corridor.

[Special K]

I can only assume that INDOT was wildly overoptimistic about the business development along this corridor.

If you build it, they will come.

[tdindy88]

I've driven that stretch of 67 many times and thought too that the assemblies are a waste. Only the ones at the intersections with the roads to Yorktown and Middletown (because there's a sign with the town name on them) are needed IMO. A simple sign on the side of the road would have sufficed, or just make it a grass median like the Muncie Bypass.

[Ian]

Almost forgot about this monstrosity...



These signals mounted on two old PennDOT freeway guide sign gantries are over the 5-way intersection between US 202, PA 309, and PA 463 in Montgomeryville. Here's the GSV of the intersection.

[agentsteel53]

two old PennDOT freeway guide sign gantries

in that case, it may not be as much a waste.  I'd imagine that it would be troublesome to trim down the gantries and add new supports, as opposed to just installing them as-is.

[OracleUsr]

This could probably be filed under both waste of overhead gantry and waste of sign metal/space:

https://maps.google.com/maps?q=http:%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fw%2Findex.php%3Ftitle%3DTemplate:Attached_KML%2FInterstate_95_in_Georgia%26action%3Draw&ll=31.28662,-81.486111&spn=0.116185,0.222988&t=h&z=13&layer=c&cbll=31.287137,-81.485948&panoid=Ftyk8wiamZraStbwRabzgw&cbp=12,20.58,,0,0.21

Ah yes, the looming metropolis of Darien...

[Alex]

Almost forgot about this monstrosity...

<snipped image>

These signals mounted on two old PennDOT freeway guide sign gantries are over the 5-way intersection between US 202, PA 309, and PA 463 in Montgomeryville. Here's the GSV of the intersection.

I first saw those in 1993 and was like, what the heck? Back then there were circle shields for 202 and 309 posted there as well.

A similar setup exists in Dubuque, IA.

[agentsteel53]

I first saw those in 1993 and was like, what the heck? Back then there were circle shields for 202 and 309 posted there as well.

circle shields, in Pennsylvania?  I've heard of Massachusetts using the circle in error, but this is the first I've heard of another state doing so.

[StogieGuy7]

I first saw those in 1993 and was like, what the heck? Back then there were circle shields for 202 and 309 posted there as well.

circle shields, in Pennsylvania?  I've heard of Massachusetts using the circle in error, but this is the first I've heard of another state doing so.

Could they have been produced by a NJ or DE based contractor?  Or by an agency in one of those states?   

Yes, MA seems to be the most commonly identified state where the wrong shield shows up (didn't Alabama's outline even once grace a state highway somewhere in Western MA?) but I think that it does happen once in a while elsewhere.  The state outline shields of Indiana come to mind.   

[agentsteel53]

(didn't Alabama's outline even once grace a state highway somewhere in Western MA?)

yep.

The state outline shields of Indiana come to mind.

those, at least, were based on an older standard.  even the Iowa 92 in the state outline is based on the pre-1926 shields.