Evaluation of Rural Guide Signing: Second Year Activities and Preliminary Recommendations (1373-2)

This report describes the tasks conducted during the second year of a three-year study evaluating the use of guide signs on conventional highways in rural areas. Some of the major tasks conducted during the second year of the study include: a survey of signing practices in other states, a survey of driver information needs, a laboratory evaluation of alternative designs for the F.M. route marker, a laboratory evaluation of alternative designs for combination signing, and a field study of driver responses to guide signing. The second-year findings were used to develop a series of preliminary recommendations that primarily address the design and placement of conventional guide signs. In general, the recommendations indicate the need for larger state route markers and taller numbers in the route markers, adoption of a new design for the F.M./R.M. route marker, moving guide signing further from the intersection, and reducing the number of unique highway classifications.