Skip to main content

So which SC Shield style do you prefer?

We're not the first to show an example of the new SC Highway shield. That honor goes to Alex Nitzman and Justin Cozart. But I finally saw my first new shield on the road this weekend, and amazingly enough, the new shield sits along with an example of the older shield.

So which one do you prefer? (Yes, that's a solicitation for comments.)

Taken on SC 274 South in Lake Wylie, SC.

Comments

Unknown said…
Yr Kidding, right?
Anonymous said…
Having just spent three days in Indiana and Illinois, and having thrown web pages together today documenting those travels, I must say I'm sick of the plain white square with black numbers and a state name. Since those are very similar to the old SC design, it's probably a sure bet if you put money on the fact that I much prefer the new shield.

Bonus points for the fact that the lettering is not black.
Larry Sheldon said…
The pale blue on white against a partly cloudy sky is pretty, but if I really wanted to know where I was and was going at night in fog or rain, I would prefer the crisp black on white that is hard to mistake for the Lions Club meeting time sign.
Unknown said…
It's certainly an improvement, but it smacks of an adaptation of the Minnesota state route sign design without the extra colors thrown in. I'm itching to see whether the new design will be used on the larger guide signs in the future, like Oklahoma started with the meat cleavers.
Taralyn said…
If there's one sign I don't want to see while traveling, more than a boring circle, it's a boring square. About time they changed the shield, even if it's just changing the coloring and adding a little bit of decoration.
Anonymous said…
I definately prefer the new shields. It's about time that South Carolina changed their shields. However, don't look for SC to go changing all their signage quickly. It's a very quirky state. I'm originally from Charlotte, NC and when I was young I remember something about a push to annex part of Mecklenburg county into South Carolina for tax base purposes. SC is bizarre, indeed.

That aside, I don't care for the blue and I had hoped one day to see state outline on the shields in both NC and SC. I live in Atlanta now, and I'm a big fan of our state highway shields, as well as Florida and Alabama. That's just the style that I prefer. However, as a sign collector, I'm going to have to snatch up an old style SC shield now.
Billy said…
My money is on the new one. I believe that now makes 10 states that use color in their state route shields. IIRC the other 9 states are CA, CO, KS, LA, MN, NM, SD, VT, and WY.
No doubt about it. The new SC state route signs have a helluva lot more personality than the "plain janes" that they've used for several years.

Now when are they going to put them on the BGSes? :)
Anonymous said…
The new signs look better (anything is better than a plain square). However at night, they are not much different. In fact the first time I saw a blue SC shield, it was my girlfriend who said "what's with the blue shield?" before I even had noticed it. The reflectivity gives the appearance of a plain square in other words.
Anonymous said…
Anything is better than a boring old square. USH
Anonymous said…
I got to go with the new shield, though black/white would be a little easier on the eyes IMO.
Bob Malme said…
Well, being originally from MA where a state route shield that has more than a number, and sometimes a letter in a square is seen as ostentatious, it's a hard choice. I guess the new one gets my vote, since it is unique and is a different from the color you see on most state signs.
WFY said…
Meh. What SC really needs is cardinal directions on top of the shields.
Anonymous said…
I like the new sign much more than the old bland ones. I lived in SC briefly (& NC too), but now live in CA. I always though the old signs were boring.
Anonymous said…
I agree with cyamamoto101: The old sign must be one of the most bland road signs in the country. Go New - Go Blue!

Popular posts from this blog

Grand Loop Road of Yellowstone National Park

  Grand Loop Road is a 140 mile loop highway which traverses the interior of Yellowstone National Park.  Grand Loop Road connects all of the major attractions and geological features of Yellowstone National Park along with the entrance roads.  Grand Loop Road is a seasonal highway and despite some conjecture never has been part of the US Route System.   Part 1; the history of Grand Loop Road The majority of history pertaining to Grand Loop Road was taken from the below National Park Service article: Historic Roads - Yellowstone National Park (U.S. National Park Service) (nps.gov) Yellowstone was declared the first National Park of the United States on March 1st, 1872.  The first real highway to access Yellowstone National Park came in 1873 when a tolled facility was constructed from Bozeman, Montana via Yankee Jim Canyon to Mammoth Hot Springs.  Numerous attempts were made to fund construction of roadway infrastructure during the early years of Yellows...

The last 1956-63 era California Sign State Route Spade?

Along southbound California State Route 170 (the Hollywood Freeway Extension) approaching the Hollywood Freeway/Ventura Freeway interchange a white California State Route 134 Sign State Route Spade can be observed on guide sign.  These white spades were specifically used during the 1956-63 era and have become increasingly rare.  This blog is intended to serve as a brief history of the Sign State Route Spade.  We also ask you as the reader, is this last 1956-63 era Sign State Route Spade or do you know of others?  Part 1; the history of the California Sign State Route Spade Prior to the Sign State Route System, the US Route System and the Auto Trails were the only highways in California signed with reassurance markers.  The creation of the US Route System by the American Association of State Highway Officials during November 1926 brought a system of standardized reassurance shields to major highways in California.  Early efforts to create a Sign State Route ...

California State Route 70; the Feather River Highway

From 2017 through to early 2019 I drove the majority of the California State Route 70; the Feather River Highway from CA 89 southwest to CA 99. CA 70 is an approximately 178.5 mile state highway which starts at US 395 near the Nevada State Line and travels west through the Feather River Canyon to CA 99.  CA 70 is often referred to as the Feather River Highway" given it's close association with the river.  Historically CA 70 was previously signed as US 40A and CA 24.  The Legislative Routes prior to the 1964 California Highway Renumbering that made up the current route of CA 70 are as follows: -  Legislative Route Number 21 from US 395 westward to Oroville. -  LRN 87 from Oroville south to Marysville. -  LRN 232 from Marysville to the current junction with CA 99.  CA 70 was even dual signed with CA 99 into Sacramento on what was LRN 232 for a time. The change from US 40A/LRN 21/LRN 87/LRN 232 can be seen by comparing the 1963 State Highway Ma...