The United States Highway Sign Changes
Date
Credits
- James Montalbano Creator
- Don Meeker Creator
- Tobias Frere-Jones 2 Creator
Media
- software 47
Techniques
- digital 154
Locations Made
- United States 756
- Texas 2
- Pennsylvania
Designers James Montalbano and Don Meeker designed the font called Clearview that is to replace the Highway Gothic font creatd by Tobias Frere-Jones that is used on the United States highway road signs. This is due to “halation” in which there is a blurred or “halo” effect around the edges of an image making it hard for drivers to see letters and numbers on the highway. Both young and old drivers with contrast sensitive eyesight are at risk of this effect which is why the Federal Highway Administration agreed to change the font to Clearview that opens up the spaces between the strokes of Highway Gothic's lower-case letters. It improved the reading distance by nearly an extra 80 feet. This accounts for giving drivers with sight impairment or disability more time to react to information when they can see it from a longer distance. Strangely, they decided to change it back in 2020 although the font was working well due to it's ineffectiveness on dark lettering on white backgrounds and the material itself used on freeway signs causing problems. The Highway Gothic is ultimately the font that resonates with the United States itself, being an old font that can be associated with America's open road and wild west, but it shows that there are many designers who try to change and accommodate for the safety of people with visual disability and impairments.
