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b.

(a) Height - The bottom of the sign should be a minimum of 3 feet above

the level of the roadway on roads posted for speeds of 30 mph and over. For roads posted for speeds less than 30 mph, the bottom of the sign should be set a minimum of 30 inches above the ground where the sign is being placed.

(b) Lateral Clearance - The distance from the edge of the roadway to the
inner edge of the sign can range from 6 to 12 feet. The normal
minimum is 6 feet. In cases where roadside topography precludes the
6-foot minimum, the inner edge of the sign shall be no closer than
2 feet from the edge of a roadway with no shoulder and no closer than
2 feet from the outer edge of a shoulder.

(c) Canting - Normally, signs should be mounted approximately

93 degrees to the direction of, and facing, those they are intended to serve. This canting helps reduce mirror reflectivity. Sign faces are normally vertical; but on up and down grades, it may be desirable to tilt from the vertical to improve readability.

(5) Sign coordinators and road engineers should be aware of "sign clutter," a
situation in which new and different signs are added to a location over time,
and the overall effect is to force the viewer to wade through a mass of
uncoordinated information to obtain that information he needs. "Sign
clutter" situations should be reevaluated to combine, redesign, and
eliminate signs to reduce the clutter.

Sign Mounts: Normally, signs should be individually erected on separate posts or mountings, except where one sign supplements another or where route markers and directional signs must be grouped. Signs should be located so they do not obscure each other and so they are not hidden by other objects.

(1) Posts.

(a) Posts are used to hold signs in a proper and permanent position and to resist swaying in the wind. Generally, wood or metal posts are used. In areas where sign supports cannot be sufficiently offset from the road edge, use a suitable breakaway or yielding design. Wood posts with less than 24 inches of cross section do not require breakaway design. Concrete bases for signposts should be flush with the ground level.

(b) Metal posts should be unpainted galvanized metal. All hardware used to affix signs to either wood or metal posts should be either aluminum or galvanized.

(c) After a sign is installed, the ends of the bolts should be snipped off and
the threads upset or fractured to prevent removal of the nuts by
vandals or thieves.

(d) The number and size of posts per sign should be proportional to the
size of the sign. For signs up to 36 inches across, use one post. For
signs ranging from 37 to 72 inches across, use two posts. From
72 inches to 96 inches across, use three posts.

(2) Massive Bases: Reclamation's large administrative/portal/entry signs should be mounted on bases that match the size and mass of the sign, as well as complement the surrounding landscape. These bases are normally located outside the roadside recovery area, usually at least 30 feet away from the edge of the roadway travel surface or off the highway right-ofway. Three basic kinds of bases are:

(a) Rock base.

(b) Brick base.

(c) Wood skirt base.

O. Determination of Letter Size: The letter size for signs is determined by the maximum allowable vehicle speed at that point of the road system. The letter size for pedestrian signs is determined by location, volume, and type of visitors using the area, rather than by speed. If people with disabilities are using the sign message, letter point size should comply with accessibility guidelines. To be easily read, the sign should have sufficient color contrast between letters and background.

The following speed rules pertain to the sign's primary message only. Letter size for a sign's secondary message will be two-thirds the height of the primary message. (Refer to design procedure for each sign category for primary/secondary identification.)

1. Roads.

a.

b.

C.

d.

Speed: 46 mph to 60 mph; lowercase height and thickness of arrow shaft,
8 inches; 18-inch recreation symbols.

Speed: 36 mph to 45 mph; lowercase height and thickness of arrow shaft,
6 inches; 18-inch recreation symbols.

Speed: 25 mph to 35 mph; lowercase height and thickness of arrow shaft,
4 inches; 12-inch recreation symbols.

Speed: 24 mph or less; lowercase height and thickness of arrow shaft, 3 inches; 12-inch recreation symbols.

2. Pedestrian and Trail Signs.

a. Short messages to be read from some distance: lowercase height and thickness of arrow shaft, 2-1/2 inches.

b.

C.

d.

Direction, distance, instructions, listings in moderate visitor use areas where pedestrian traffic is channeled by walks, etc.: lowercase height and thickness of arrow shaft, 2 inches.

Plaques, markers, and object identification: capital height, 1-1/2 inches; lowercase height and thickness of arrow shaft, 1 inch; 8-inch recreation symbol.

Description sign texts: capital height, 1 inch; lowercase height and thickness of arrow shaft, 5/8 inch; 8-inch recreation symbol.

The Guidelines for letter and space size may be adjusted to meet special conditions, such as composition, emphasis, and so forth. Never should sizes be less than those indicated in the charts for particular uses or speeds. As a rule, 1 inch of letter height can be read from a distance of 50 feet; 2 inches from 100 feet, and so on.

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1. Signs should use both uppercase and lowercase letters. The first letter of all proper nouns should be capitalized.

2.

3.

4.

Identification signs should use uppercase and lowercase letters (example: "Aspen
Grove Campground, Upper Colorado Region"). The Department of the Interior and
Bureau of Reclamation designations shall be spelled with all capital letters.

Informational signs should use uppercase and lowercase letters.

Directional signs should use uppercase and lowercase letters.

5. Regulatory/warning signs should follow MUTCD standards.

6.

Temporary signs should follow the rules set forth in the category to which they
belong.

7. Concessionaire signs should follow all applicable rules set forth above.

8.

9.

Boating signs and snowmobile signs should follow the rules set forth in the Uniform
Waterways Marker System and the National Snowmobile Association Standards.

No specific guidelines have been established for interpretive signs. However, the format should conform to the overall interpretive program.

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Q. Spacing Guide:

1.

Arrows.-Arrows can be used to point in four directions: straight up, straight down, straight left (90 degrees), and straight right (90 degrees).

Arrows are to be positioned either to the right or left of the message or symbol so that the arrow is pointing away from the message or symbol, rather than to it. On trail signs for pedestrians, which contain long listings of directions, the arrow may be placed above or below the message for greater clarity. If, at certain locations, a narrow sign is preferred, and the position of an arrow to the right or left of the message requires an excessively wide sign, the arrow may be placed below the message.

Arrows will conform to these proportions:

1.0

2.

Minimum Vertical Spacing.-These proportions apply to all signs except Design Types A and B.

a.

Between the top edge of a sign and a symbol, arrow, or message, allow space equal to 1-1/2 primary lowercase letter height above the message or one-third the symbol height above the symbol, whichever creates the greater total sign height.

b.

C.

marina L ມ

boat ramp

1/3 symbol height -12" symbol

6" or 1-1/2 times letter height

4" letter height

Between baseline of first line and top of second line of primary message, allow space equal to 1-1/2 primary lowercase letter height.

Strawberry
Bay

6"

← baseline

9"

6"

Between baseline of primary message and top line of a secondary message, allow space equal to one primary lowercase letter height.

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