Highway Signs Get a Facelift

A new typeface has gotten interim approval by the Federal Highway Administration and has been adopted by 20 states already. The new face called Clearview is replacing Highway Gothic which has been in service for over 50 years. The new typeface has larger counters and a higher x-height to increase legibility while taking up less space overall. Clearview was created by enviromental designer, Don Meeker and type designer, James Montalbano. Even Tobias Frere-Jones comments on the brashness of Highway Gothic (which he recreated with his own typeface Interstate) and the need to re-evalute the letterforms.

The font has already been used in the new branding for AT&T.

Get more information about the redesign of the highway signage and the development of Highway Gothic, check out the full New York Times article or visit:

Typographica's in-depth analysis
Clearview Highway

{Thanks to Bob at Skylab Letterpress for the tip!}