Recommended Mounting Heights for Freestanding On-Premise Signs

Freestanding on-premise signs are commercial signs that are not attached to buildings or other structures and include ground-mounted, monument, pylon, and pole signs. This report focuses on issues related to the appropriate mounting height of freestanding signs. The objective of this report is to develop best practices for optimal freestanding on-premise sign mounting height based on roadway factors, sign visibility, and traffic safety, relying on existing research and practice and basic geometry, and describing variations for different road types and sign lateral offsets. To achieve this, the existing on-premise and traffic sign mounting height research was reviewed, and the current state-of-the-practice was summarized. In addition, a technical analysis of on-premise sign height and sign visibility based on roadway cross-section and driver-to-sign sightlines was conducted.