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The rogue G28-1 California State Highway Spades

In this short blog we look at the somewhat rare but not unheard-of rogue G28-1 California State Highway Spades.


Part 1; what is the G28-1 California State Highway Spade? 

The Caltrans Manual of Uniform Traffic Control Devices Sign Chart from 2014 ("Caltrans MUTCD") dictates the types of signs and highway shields permitted for traffic control use in California.  California is known for it's more ornate cut-out shields which are used for, US Routes, Interstate Highways, and State Routes.  The common shields which are typically found through California are:

US Route:  G26-2

Interstate:  G27-2

State Highway:  G28-2

The Caltrans MUTCD provides alternative shields for, US Routes, Interstate Highways, and State Routes.  These alternative shields are intended for guide sign usage but aren't explicitly limited to said function.  These alternative shields are:

US Route:  G26-1

Interstate:  G27-1

State Highway:  G28-1

The primary reassurance shields for; US Routes, Interstate Highways, and State Highways can be seen depicted below.


Part 2; the rogue G28-1 California State Highway Spades

While in theory the G26-1 US Route Shield and G27-1 Interstate Shield could possible see a non-guide sign reassurance shield use I personally haven't encountered any on the road  Conversely I have encountered numerous G28-1 State Highway Spades in use as reassurance shields.  I have also acquired several G28-1 California State Highway Spades in my signage collection. 

The cover to this blog is an unused G28-1 California State Route 14 ("CA 14") shield I have in my sign collection.  This CA 14 is tiny as it measures only 18x18 inches.

I also have a G28-1 style CA 135 shield which can be identified as intended for assurance use given it has two mounting holes.  This shield is an older variant which is comprised from reflective paint with vinyl numerals.  

In terms of field signage this G28-1 CA 227 shield can be found near Arroyo Grande.

This G28-1 CA 180 shield was found on Whites Bridge Avenue (former CA 180) west of downtown Fresno. 

This G28-1 CA 270 shield once served as the first westbound reassurance shield as Bodie Road transitions from State Park maintenance to Caltrans maintenance.  Unfortunately this shield was missing upon my last visit to Bodie State Historic Park.  

G28-1 shields can be found in use in Yosemite National Park on El Portal Road and the Big Oak Flat Road.  CA 140 is marked on El Portal Road whereas CA 120 is marked on the Big Oak Flat Road and Tioga Pass Road.  

Know of any other G28-1 State Highway Shields in use around California for reassurance purposes?  Know of any G26-1 US Route Shields or G27-1 Interstate Highway Shields in use for reassurance purposes?  If so, please feel free to share in the comments, we would love to hear from you.

Comments

Anonymous said…
As I understand it, the G28-1 signs in Yosemite National Park aren't really used for "reassurance", since the state highways shown on those signs don't officially exist within the park, but rather end at the park boundaries. This is reflected in the legislative definitions of those routes, and Caltrans' Postmile Query Tool.

Those signs within the park seem intended to help park visitors reach the state highways outside the park.

Oscar Voss, ovoss@pobox.com
Challenger Tom said…
With CA 120 and 140 in Yosemite that is an interesting topic. 120 definitely signed enough that one could infer that it is continuous through the Park on the Tioga Pass Road and Big Oak Flat Road. With 140 it’s original 1934 definition had it use El Portal Road and the Old Big Oak Flat Road through the Park to reach CA 120 on what is now Evergreen Road (the Old Tioga Road) just outside the Yosemite boundary. I’ve been trying to find photos for years which might show CSAA 140 shields in Yosemite on the Big Oak Flat Road, thus far to no avail.
Stevashe said…
I know of one location with some rogue G28-1 signs that was actually only posted this year, and it even has two since it happens to be on a concurrency! It's on CA 36/89 just east of the CA 89 turnoff for Lassen National Park and Morgan Summit, where a realignment project was just completed. Unfortunately I only seem to have managed to get a picture of the back of the sign assembly, but you can at least see it has the different shape of the G28-1 compared to the G28-2: https://www.flickr.com/photos/184498735@N04/50379707676/in/dateposted-public/
Randy said…
There's a couple G28-1 style CA-58 signs at the Mojave/CA City Blvd overpass and freeway entrance.
Anonymous said…
Hi Tom, you showed some signs that you mentioned were in your collection; how did you go about obtaining them? I've been looking to get one for a bit, but I don't know where to start or where to look for them.
Challenger Tom said…
I got most of mine from eBay, antique shops and trading with other collectors.

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