A roads written in motorway font

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qwertyK
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A roads written in motorway font

Post by qwertyK »

Is this a new phenonemon? Motorways have their numbers written in their own font, but A roads traditionally just have it written in the transport typeface, however, I've seen a handful of A road signs written in the motorway font. Are these just anomalies or is there some reason behind this? I know of nne sign near Tilbury Docks showing the A1089 or some other A road in the motorway font though I can't for the life of me find it now
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the cheesecake man
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Re: A roads written in motorway font

Post by the cheesecake man »

Just incompetence I think. I raise you a B road in motorway font.
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Re: A roads written in motorway font

Post by qwertyK »

the cheesecake man wrote: Wed Jun 29, 2022 20:27 Just incompetence I think. I raise you a B road in motorway font.
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Brenley Corner
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Re: A roads written in motorway font

Post by Brenley Corner »

One for the 'A2' the eastbound M2/A299 at Brenley Corner - it was there in 2019 according to GSV. The latest 2021 image shows the sign half missing (the arrow has gone) and obscured by foliage.

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Re: A roads written in motorway font

Post by JohnnyMo »

Brenley Corner wrote: Thu Jun 30, 2022 12:55 One for the 'A2' the eastbound M2/A299 at Brenley Corner - it was there in 2019 according to GSV. The latest 2021 image shows the sign half missing (the arrow has gone) and obscured by foliage.

Tony
This is a better view
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Re: A roads written in motorway font

Post by Brenley Corner »

JohnnyMo wrote: Thu Jun 30, 2022 12:58
Brenley Corner wrote: Thu Jun 30, 2022 12:55 One for the 'A2' the eastbound M2/A299 at Brenley Corner - it was there in 2019 according to GSV. The latest 2021 image shows the sign half missing (the arrow has gone) and obscured by foliage.

Tony
This is a better view
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MotorwayGuy
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Re: A roads written in motorway font

Post by MotorwayGuy »

There has always been inconstancy with the use of the motorway font, such as This one near M2 junction 1 where everything except (M25) is in Motorway. The standard seems to be bracketed numbers are in transport, which is why this one looks odd.

This has the Chopsticks symbol but is in Transport: https://www.google.com/maps/@51.4353362 ... 384!8i8192 This one has "B2173" in Transport for some reason.

The only example I can think of where I've seen the motorway font used on a non-blue background is the A2 example at Brenley Corner which is now damaged.
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Re: A roads written in motorway font

Post by MotorwayGuy »

MotorwayGuy wrote: Thu Jun 30, 2022 16:26 There has always been inconstancy with the use of the motorway font, such as This one near M2 junction 1 where everything except (M25) is in Motorway. The standard seems to be bracketed numbers are in transport, which is why this one looks odd.

This has the Chopsticks symbol but has M25in Transport for some reason.

The only example I can think of where I've seen the motorway font used on a non-blue background is the A2 example at Brenley Corner which is now damaged.
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Re: A roads written in motorway font

Post by James1978 »

It's on a motorway but it's one of my favourite mis-uses of motorway font!

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Re: A roads written in motorway font

Post by Ritchie333 »

Brenley Corner wrote: Thu Jun 30, 2022 12:55 One for the 'A2' the eastbound M2/A299 at Brenley Corner - it was there in 2019 according to GSV. The latest 2021 image shows the sign half missing (the arrow has gone) and obscured by foliage.

Tony
The "LONDON M2" in all-caps on the gantry just behind this always stands out when I drive through it.
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Re: A roads written in motorway font

Post by Chris5156 »

MotorwayGuy wrote: Thu Jun 30, 2022 16:26The only example I can think of where I've seen the motorway font used on a non-blue background is the A2 example at Brenley Corner which is now damaged.
There used to be a few others. M4 J2, westbound on the A4 underneath, used to have a sign where the sliproad up to the M4 started that had A4 one way and M4 the other, both in motorway even though the A4 panel was green. At the former A1/M62 junction at Ferrybridge, the gantry signs at the exits from the A1 - in both directions, I think - had A1 in Motorway, in yellow on green. That vanished when the A1(M) opened which would be 2005.
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Re: A roads written in motorway font

Post by tom66 »

the cheesecake man wrote: Wed Jun 29, 2022 20:27 Just incompetence I think. I raise you a B road in motorway font.
Could that be an anomaly from the days where the A14 (now A1307) was a hidden spur of the A1M? The other side is a blue motorway sign. Going back to 2008 the green sign is still there so who knows.
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Re: A roads written in motorway font

Post by Chris5156 »

tom66 wrote: Sat Jul 09, 2022 22:36
the cheesecake man wrote: Wed Jun 29, 2022 20:27 Just incompetence I think. I raise you a B road in motorway font.
Could that be an anomaly from the days where the A14 (now A1307) was a hidden spur of the A1M? The other side is a blue motorway sign. Going back to 2008 the green sign is still there so who knows.
It certainly dates from when that bit of road was the A14, but the status of the spur makes no difference: it’s a sign at the exit point to a non-primary road from a primary A-road, so it should always have been black on white and written in Transport. It’s just a botch.
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Richard_Fairhurst
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Re: A roads written in motorway font

Post by Richard_Fairhurst »

I'd rather have Motorway than this stretched version of Transport...

https://goo.gl/maps/K3LqDb2iFb2EcNKS7
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Chris Bertram
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Re: A roads written in motorway font

Post by Chris Bertram »

Richard_Fairhurst wrote: Sun Jul 10, 2022 14:15 I'd rather have Motorway than this stretched version of Transport...

https://goo.gl/maps/K3LqDb2iFb2EcNKS7
I know what you mean, but on a fingerpost like that, anything goes.
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Richard_Fairhurst
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Re: A roads written in motorway font

Post by Richard_Fairhurst »

Indeed, and the historic Oxfordshire design is for the road number to be in tall lettering (there's even one outside County Hall), so full marks to the sign designer for trying. It's just ugly... fonts shouldn't be stretched.

(Northamptonshire had a lovely solution to B road numbers on fingerposts back in the 90s, which was a reversed-out area with the number in white-on-black Transport... but every time I try to find one on Street View I fail!)
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Chris Bertram
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Re: A roads written in motorway font

Post by Chris Bertram »

Richard_Fairhurst wrote: Sun Jul 10, 2022 19:13 Indeed, and the historic Oxfordshire design is for the road number to be in tall lettering (there's even one outside County Hall), so full marks to the sign designer for trying. It's just ugly... fonts shouldn't be stretched.

(Northamptonshire had a lovely solution to B road numbers on fingerposts back in the 90s, which was a reversed-out area with the number in white-on-black Transport... but every time I try to find one on Street View I fail!)
Pre-Worboys signs usually had B-roads shown in white on a black background. This sounds like a homage to that practice.
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Re: A roads written in motorway font

Post by Beardy5632 »

A1(M) J65 used to have one years ago but it ended up getting replaced with this.
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Re: A roads written in motorway font

Post by traffic-light-man »

The gantry before the A59/M58 diverge at Switch Island has a sign with A59 in Motorway.
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