Evaluating Recognition Distance of Proposed Alternative Symbol Sign Designs

This paper documents a research project investigating the use of a simulator to compare recognition distances of various proposed symbol sign alternatives. The research compared alternatives for symbols for wireless internet, rental car return, ferry terminals, motorist information, automated enforcement, school bus stop ahead, motorcycle warning messages, truck parking, truck electrification, and marking hazardous objects. Thirty-six symbol alternatives were analyzed using forty-eight research participants who were tested at Turner-Fairbank Highway Research Center’s Highway Sign Simulator in McLean, Virginia. Recognition distance values were obtained for each of the symbol alternatives and compared to determine whether any of the symbols were superior to the others. With the exception of the Ferry symbol sign and the Truck Electrification symbol sign, all of the sign categories had statistically different sign alternatives for mean recognition distances. The paper includes a summary table with the final recommendations based on recognition distance.