A gantry (also known as a sign holder, road sign holder, sign structure or road sign structure) is a

traffic sign Traffic signs or road signs are signs erected at the side of or above roads to give instructions or provide information to road users. The earliest signs were simple wooden or stone milestones. Later, signs with directional arms were introduce ...

assembly in which signs are mounted or

railway signal A railway signal is a visual display device that conveys instructions or provides warning of instructions regarding the driver’s authority to proceed. The driver interprets the signal's indication and acts accordingly. Typically, a signal mi ...

s are supported on an overhead support. They also often contain the apparatus for traffic monitoring systems and

cameras A camera is an optical instrument that can capture an image. Most cameras can capture 2D images, with some more advanced models being able to capture 3D images. At a basic level, most cameras consist of sealed boxes (the camera body), with a ...

, or

open road tolling Open road tolling (ORT), also called all-electronic tolling, cashless tolling, or free-flow tolling, is the collection of tolls on toll roads without the use of toll booths. An electronic toll collection system is usually used instead. The ma ...

systems. Gantries are usually built on high-traffic roads or routes with several lanes, where signs posted on the side of the highway would be hard for drivers to see. Gantries may be cantilevered or one sided on the left, right and center (sometimes referred to as a half-gantry or Butterfly gantry), or they may be bridges with poles on each side. Similar gantries are used in

railway signalling Railway signalling (), also called railroad signaling (), is a system used to control the movement of railway traffic. Trains move on fixed rails, making them uniquely susceptible to collision. This susceptibility is exacerbated by the enormo ...

or to suspend

overhead line An overhead line or overhead wire is an electrical cable that is used to transmit electrical energy to electric locomotives, trolleybuses or trams. It is known variously as: * Overhead catenary * Overhead contact system (OCS) * Overhead equipm ...

s on multi-track lines.

Around the world

Canada

Gantry signs are commonly used in urban highways in Canada to support overhead signs. Half-gantries are used to place signs near exits where space does not permit having signs to the right side of the roadway. Gantries can also be used to hold cameras for toll road entrances/exits and to hold electronic information signs such as on

Ontario Highway 407 King's Highway 407, commonly referred to as Highway 407 and colloquially as the "four-oh-seven", is a tolled 400-series highway in the Canadian province of Ontario. Comprising a privately leased segment as well as a publicly owned segment, the ...

. The style of gantry used are mostly truss gantries. Older gantries have truss supports (round or box) and newer ones are now supported by cylindrical legs. In most jurisdictions in Canada, signs that are mounted on overhead gantries are installed perpendicular to the roadway. In Québec, however, signs are angled slightly face-down towards the roadway such that the sign face is directed towards the motorists below. In New Brunswick, the opposite is true: signs are angled slightly face-up to capture and reflect more sunlight towards the roadway.

Hong Kong

Hong Kong's highways use a

gantry crane A gantry crane is a crane built atop a gantry, which is a structure used to straddle an object or workspace. They can range from enormous "full" gantry cranes, capable of lifting some of the heaviest loads in the world, to small shop cranes, us ...

type to support signs. The road signs are usually located on top and some have lights to indicate open or closed lanes.

United Kingdom

Gantry signs are being installed at various locations around the trunk

motorway 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 ...

network as increasing amounts of traffic mean that

road sign Traffic signs or road signs are signs erected at the side of or above roads to give instructions or provide information to road users. The earliest signs were simple wooden or stone milestones. Later, signs with directional arms were introduce ...

s at the side of the carriageway are frequently obscured by large goods vehicles. They may also consist of variable-message signs, and more recently

Active Traffic Management Active traffic management (also managed lanes, smart lanes, managed/smart motorways) is a method of increasing peak capacity and smoothing traffic flows on busy major highways. Techniques include variable speed limits, hard-shoulder running and ...

, to close lanes due to accidents and for other reasons. They can also be used to specify temporary speed limits. Gantries in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and ...

display exit (junction) numbers, distances to junctions / exits (1 mile, 1/2 mile, 1/4 mile, 1/3 mile, 3/4 mile, 2/3 mile) and destinations reached, and if necessary what lane to use for them.

United States

Gantry signs are used frequently in the U.S., particularly in urban areas where

freeways 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 ...

have an exit every mile to fit in with the grid system. These half-gantries usually have the exit number and the road or street that can be reached. Gantries can also span the whole road, such as at major junctions.

Designs

*W, M and N's *

Pedestal A pedestal (from French ''piédestal'', Italian ''piedistallo'' 'foot of a stall') or plinth is a support at the bottom of a statue, vase, column, or certain altars. Smaller pedestals, especially if round in shape, may be called socles. In ...

- for free and

toll road A toll road, also known as a turnpike or tollway, is a public or private road (almost always a controlled-access highway in the present day) for which a fee (or '' toll'') is assessed for passage. It is a form of road pricing typically implement ...

s * Tubular pipes

Gallery of road gantries

File:View from Szövő Street Road Bridge, gantry, 2020 Érd.jpg, View toward Iparos Street Interchange (Exit 18) from Szövő Street Road Bridge over M7 motorway in Parkváros neighborhood, Érd, Pest County,

Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Cr ...

File:Terminal East gantry sign at DIA with empty freeway during the pandemic. 2020-04-30.jpg, Terminal East gantry sign at

Denver International Airport Denver International Airport , locally known as DIA, is an international airport in the Western United States, primarily serving metropolitan Denver, Colorado, as well as the greater Front Range Urban Corridor. At , it is the largest airport i ...

(DIA) with an empty freeway during the pandemic. File:I-25 SB Exit 142 road sign gantry, Colo Spgs.jpg, At

Colorado Springs Colorado Springs is a home rule municipality in, and the county seat of, El Paso County, Colorado, United States. It is the largest city in El Paso County, with a population of 478,961 at the 2020 United States Census, a 15.02% increase since ...

File:SB US 98-301 Road Sign Gantry; Dade City, FL.jpg,

US 98 U.S. Route 98 (US 98) is an east–west United States Highway in the Southeastern United States that runs from western Mississippi to southern Florida. It was established in 1933 as a route between Pensacola and Apalachicola, Florida, and has sinc ...

Dade City Dade City is a city in and the county seat of Pasco County, Florida, United States. It is located in the Tampa Bay Area. The population was 6,437 at the 2010 census. Dade City is popular with tourists for its antique stores, restaurants, and h ...

File:Toll Collect Portique A65.JPG, Electronic toll collection verification of

road tax Road tax, known by various names around the world, is a tax which has to be paid on, or included with, a motorised vehicle to use it on a public road. National implementations Australia All states and territories require an annual vehicle registra ...

payment by

truck A truck or lorry is a motor vehicle designed to transport cargo, carry specialized payloads, or perform other utilitarian work. Trucks vary greatly in size, power, and configuration, but the vast majority feature body-on-frame constructi ...

s on German

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 ...

s File:A 8 Dreieck Inntal (2009).jpg File:Autobahn-A3-Flughafen-Rhein-Main-2013-Ffm-035.jpg

Railway use

On railways, gantries span multiple

railway tracks A railway track (British English and UIC terminology) or railroad track (American English), also known as permanent way or simply track, is the structure on a railway or railroad consisting of the rails, fasteners, railroad ties (sleeper ...

and carry either

s or both.

Gallery of railway gantries

File:SR signals from cab of standard five.jpg, A gantry of British semaphore signals seen from the cab of a steam locomotive File:Overhead_catenary_bridge.jpg, Gantry with old and new suspended equipment at Grivita railway station,

Bucharest Bucharest ( , ; ro, București ) is the capital and largest city of Romania, as well as its cultural, industrial, and financial centre. It is located in the southeast of the country, on the banks of the Dâmbovița River, less than north o ...

. File:Glasgow Central Station - geograph.org.uk - 1108849.jpg, Signal gantry in

Glasgow Central Station , symbol_location = gb , symbol = rail , image = Main Concourse at Glasgow Central Station.JPG , caption = The main concourse , borough = Glasgow, City of Glasgow , country ...

File:Railway-electrification.jpg,

Overhead line An overhead line or overhead wire is an electrical cable that is used to transmit electrical energy to electric locomotives, trolleybuses or trams. It is known variously as: * Overhead catenary * Overhead contact system (OCS) * Overhead equipm ...

gantry in Denmark File:COUNTY-Pre-Rebuild-West-Gantry.jpg, 4-track section of Amtrak's

Northeast Corridor The Northeast Corridor (NEC) is an electrified railroad line in the Northeast megalopolis of the United States. Owned primarily by Amtrak, it runs from Boston through Providence, New Haven, Stamford, New York City, Philadelphia, Wilmington, ...

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delawa ...

File:Railway overhead line electification gantry Church Road Tottenham London England 1.jpg, Railway

electification gantry Church Road

Tottenham Tottenham () is a town in North London, England, within the London Borough of Haringey. It is located in the ceremonial county of Greater London. Tottenham is centred north-northeast of Charing Cross, bordering Edmonton to the north, Wal ...

London England File:Paris-St-Lazare Portiques A2A3.jpg, Gantry at

Gare Saint-Lazare The Gare Saint-Lazare (English: St Lazarus station), officially Paris-Saint-Lazare, is one of the six large mainline railway station termini in Paris, France. It serves train services toward Normandy, northwest of Paris, along the Paris–Le Hav ...

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Gantry (Road Sign) Traffic signs Street furniture