Route shield pavement markings for Interstate Highways 30 and 35E in Dallas

A route shield pavement marking (also called an advance pavement marking or pavement marking shield) is a

road surface marking Road surface marking is any kind of device or material that is used on a road surface in order to convey official information; they are commonly placed with road marking machines (also referred to as road marking equipment or pavement marking eq ...

that depicts a

route shield A highway shield or route marker is a sign denoting the route number of a highway, usually in the form of a symbolic shape with the route number enclosed. As the focus of the sign, the route number is usually the sign's largest element, with othe ...

and functions as either a

road traffic safety Road traffic safety refers to the methods and measures used to prevent road users from being killed or seriously injured. Typical road users include pedestrians, cyclists, motorists, vehicle passengers, horse riders, and passengers of on-ro ...

measure or a mitigation against

street sign theft Street sign theft occurs when street signs are stolen, to be used as decorations, sold as scrap metal or to avoid obeying the law by claiming later the sign was not there. Although the theft often seems arbitrary, signs with unusual or amusing ...

Purpose

In the United States, route shield pavement markings are closely associated with

U.S. Route 66 U.S. Route 66 or U.S. Highway 66 (US 66 or Route 66) was one of the original highways in the United States Numbered Highway System. It was established on November 11, 1926, with road signs erected the following year. The h ...

. Owing to the original route's fame,

reassurance marker A reassurance marker or confirming marker is a type of traffic sign that confirms the identity of the route being traveled on. It does not provide information found on other types of road signs, such as distances traveled, distances to other locat ...

s for "Historic U.S. Route 66" have often been stolen by souvenir hunters, so many localities have painted or stenciled the U.S. Route shield or outline directly onto the pavement. Route shield pavement markings for Interstate 8 and Interstate 5

Route shield pavement markings for Interstate 8 and Interstate 5

The 2009 edition of the ''

Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices The ''Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices for Streets and Highways'' (usually referred to as the ''Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices'', abbreviated MUTCD) is a document issued by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) of the Unit ...

'' and accompanying ''Standard Highway Signs and Markings'' handbook introduced the route shield pavement marking as an option generally available to traffic engineers. It may be used as a safety device on a multilane,

controlled-access highway A controlled-access highway is a type of highway that has been designed for high-speed vehicular traffic, with all traffic flow—ingress and egress—regulated. Common English terms are freeway, motorway and expressway. Other similar terms i ...

, reminding motorists to change to the correct lane well in advance of a major freeway interchange or fork; on a surface street leading to a freeway entrance ramp, where it is infeasible to install an overhead guide sign; or ahead of a turbo roundabout. Route shield pavement markings are intended to aid older drivers who have experienced a decline in

working memory Working memory is a cognitive system with a limited capacity that can hold information temporarily. It is important for reasoning and the guidance of decision-making and behavior. Working memory is often used synonymously with short-term memory, ...

or attention span. Route shield pavement markings have been installed in a number of U.S. cities. In 2018, the

California Department of Transportation The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) is an executive department of the U.S. state of California. The department is part of the cabinet-level California State Transportation Agency (CalSTA). Caltrans is headquartered in Sacrame ...

began installing them in the

Sacramento ) , image_map = Sacramento County California Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Sacramento Highlighted.svg , mapsize = 250x200px , map_caption = Location within Sacramento ...

area using funds from the 2017

Road Repair and Accountability Act The Road Repair and Accountability Act of 2017 (Senate Bill 1), also known as the "Gas Tax", is a California legislative bill that was passed on April 6, 2017 with the aim of repairing roads, improving traffic safety, and expanding public tran ...

. In

Knoxville, Tennessee Knoxville is a city in and the county seat of Knox County, Tennessee, Knox County in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of the 2020 United States census, Knoxville's population was 190,740, making it the largest city in the East Tennessee Grand Di ...

, route shields were affixed to the

Interstate 40 Interstate 40 (I-40) is a major east–west Interstate Highway running through the south-central portion of the United States. At a length of , it is the third-longest Interstate Highway in the country, after I-90 and I-80. From west to ea ...

road surface as a cost-effective mitigation for a high crash rate caused by weaving maneuvers. The

Ohio Department of Transportation The Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT; ) is the administrative department of the Ohio state government responsible for developing and maintaining all state and U.S. roadways outside of municipalities and all Interstates except the Ohio T ...

suggests route shield pavement markings as one method for park and trail managers to display reassurance markers along off-road portions of U.S. Bicycle Routes and state bicycle routes.

Design and application

Modern route shield pavement markings are made of thermoplastic road marking paint with glass beads for reflectivity at night. They may be installed as part of a routine resurfacing project or after the fact, by placing and melting prefabricated mats onto the road surface. Depending on traffic volumes and weather conditions, they are expected to last from three to five years. The paint can be textured to provide adequate friction for motorcyclists. A route shield pavement marking measures approximately . It is half the width of a standard

Interstate highway The Dwight D. Eisenhower National System of Interstate and Defense Highways, commonly known as the Interstate Highway System, is a network of controlled-access highways that forms part of the National Highway System in the United States. Th ...

lane; like some other kinds of pavement markings, it is elongated to appear proportional to a driver traveling at high speed. It may appear in full color or as a simple outline.

Effectiveness

A 2010 study by the

Texas A&M Transportation Institute The Texas A&M Transportation Institute (TTI) in Bryan/College Station, Texas is a transportation research agency in the United States. The institute was created in 1950, primarily in response to the needs of the Texas Highway Department (now th ...

found that route shield pavement markings combined with directional arrows were more effective than overhead guide signs in stressful situations. , their effectiveness has not been proven in the field through statistical analysis.

Purpose

Design and application

Effectiveness

References

Further reading