I noticed something while driving around the Philadelphia region this weekend (King of Prussia, to be specific). It appears that the Commonwealth of PA has begun installing road signs using the new Clearview typeface on its roads. The US Federal Government has given official interim approval for the use of the Clearview typeface on all Federal roads. The Clearview typeface (below) was designed by James Montalbano and replaces the typeface previously used, FHWA Standard Alphabet E-modified (above), developed in 1949-50 by Theodore Forbes for CalTrans. Read more…
I noticed something while driving around the Philadelphia region this weekend (King of Prussia, to be specific). It appears that the Commonwealth of PA has begun installing road signs using the new Clearview typeface on its roads. The US Federal Government has given official interim approval for the use of the Clearview typeface on all Federal roads. The Clearview typeface (below) was designed by James Montalbano and replaces the typeface previously used, FHWA Standard Alphabet E-modified (above), developed in 1949-50 by Theodore Forbes for CalTrans.
The Clearview font was developed through a decade of research starting in the early 1990s. The goal of the Clearview font was to increase legibility and reduce halation of highway sign legends in comparison to that of Standard Highway Signs (SHS) Alphabets (Highway Gothic font). This research development effort resulted in final design of Clearview font letters in 2003.
Signs using the new Clearview typeface are currently in place in:
– Texas (statewide)
– Pennsylvania
– British Columbia
– Toronto (older version)
– Yukon
– other Canadian municipalities
The Clearview Typeface Supplement (PDF format) has some good examples of the new typeface in action. Check it out if you what to see what a ONE WAY sign looks like to Mixed Case.
