Motorway signs

Reassurance / distance signs

Australia - Mexico | Netherlands - Vietnam

Australia - New South Wales
Location: M 7 (Westlink - Western Sydney Orbital).
To the right of the road number, you'll usually see the road name (like in Queensland), but the name of this road is not signposted for some reason. "Pennant Hills Rd" refers to an intersecting road. As always in Australia, road names are being referred to in allcaps, but whilst they are signposted against a white background on NSW directional signs, they are not signposted on a background on reassurance signs. Also, drivers are being reassured that they are still well on their way to the airport. Oddly, they are not being told how far they are away from it.
Photo: Sam Laybutt / Ozroads

Australia - Queensland
Location: Pacific Motorway (Brisbane - Sydney)
Road numbering new style in Queensland. Prefix and number in yellow will be common throughout Australia in a few years.

Australia - Victoria
Location: B 400 (Gippsland Hwy, Sale - Melbourne via Foster)
This sign is from a rural highway rather than from a motorway (or freeway, to use the Australian word). There is no difference with a motorway reassurance sign though. Four or five destinations, including the focal point (Foster) and the remote focal point (Melbourne).
Photo: Darren Hodges / Signspotters

Australia - Western Australia
Location: SR2 (Perth - Joondalup)
The reassurance signs on the motorways in Greater Perth only use the names of the first couple of exits and their road numbers as focal points. On top, the number and (if available) name of the road you are on are indicated.
Photo: Paul Rands / Expressway

Austria
Location: Wattens, A12 (Landeck - Rosenheim).
At the bottom is the distance to the next exit. München (Munich) and Salzburg are the control cities of this road. Don't expect that each of these destinations always returns on the next distance sign. National and European road numbers are also shown.

Belgium - Flanders
Location: E19 (Antwerpen - Rotterdam).
Flemish reassurance signs are always placed to the left of the road, i.e. in the middle. Apart from large cities on this road, you will always get the distance to the next exit. Breda is the control city. No road number.
Photo: Mediar

Belgium - Wallonie
Location: E429 (Tournai - Brussels)
Much like its Flemish counterpart, but placed on the right (and correct :-) side of the road. The next exit is always one of the destinations listed on the reassurance sign. Sometimes, reassurance signs in the Wallonie also list the name of the road, such as "Autoroute des Ardennes". This is above all done after major intersections.

Bulgaria
Location: A1 (Sofia - Svilengrad - Istanbul).
Major cities along the road (and one on the intersecting A4). No national or European road number, although both are featured on other Bulgarian signs.

Chile
Location: RN5: Ruta Panamericana (Puerto Montt - Santiago - Peruvian border)
A somewhat older sign as is evidenced by the use of capitals only. But for the rest, no different than more recent signs with proper capitalisation. Two or three major towns ahead (in Santiago, they would rather show suburbs or intersecting roads). The distance sign does not show the road number. Chile uses separate road markers for that purpose.
Photo: Wouter Jorritsma

China
Location: Beijing Airport Expressway
Distance signs appear after every exit, typically indicating the distances to the next few exits and a control city. The road number is usually confirmed on a separate trailblazer.

Croatia
Location: A7 (Ljubljana - Rijeka)
Major destinations. The destination at the top of the sign (Split) is not even on this particular road, so destinations on intersecting roads are also shown. Note the exit symbol behind "Jurdani", denoting that this is the next exit and that the distance indicated is to the exit only.
Photo: Rien / Belgian Roads

Czech Republic
Location: Praha Jizni Mestro, D1 (Praha - Brno).
Road numbers and destination. Brno is the control city; Pruhonice is the next exit. Note the European road triplex.
Photo: Ceske Dalnice

Denmark
Location: E45 (Flensburg - Arhus)
Couple of major destinations on the road ahead. On a blue background below is the number, the name and distance to the next exit
Photo: ABRob

Ethiopia
Location: Bishoptu, Addis Abeba - Adama Expressway
Names of the three subsequent exits and their distances. Motorways in Ethiopia are not (yet?) numbered.
Photo: Vatse

Finland
Location: E75 (Helsinki - Lahti)
Finnish national road number, European road number and a number of major destinations. No nearest exit.
Photo: Ronan / Schweizer Autobahnen

France
Location: A5 (Paris - Langres)
Sign shows French national road number (in red) and the European road number (in green). The use of stacks is always a bit tricky in France. It tends to be used for towns in intersecting roads (such as Nancy here), but not always. To a degree, it seems to be a trick to place less important towns on a secondary stack.

Germany
Location: Gau Bickelheim, A61 (Ludwigshafen - Venlo).
Sign will usually only show destinations on the present road. If a city is on an intersecting road, the number of this road will be displayed before that city. That is the case here for Mainz. Reassurance signs are the only German signs to list European road numbers.

Greece
Location: A2
Having two major destinations on your bi-lingual sign already fills up the sign. Note the odd alignment of the distances, which you would see aligned at the right in most other nations. Interestingly enough, the abbreviation "km" is not written in Greek (even though this is something you see elsewhere in Greece).
Photo: E. Gavic / autosnelwegen.net

Hungary
Location: M7 (Budapest - Zagreb)
Couple of major cities and the road number on the main sign. The three towns below the road number are on an intersecting road. At the bottom on a separate sign is the distance to the next exit, which is only referred to with its number. As Hungarian exits are numbered by the nearest kilometer post, this bit of information is quite useless, since every single kilometer post already is clear enough as to the distance to exit 39. In the background is something typically Hungarian too: a separate reassurance sign that shows destinations in the somewhat longer distance.
Photo: Falusi

Ireland
Location: M4 (Kinnegad - Dublin)
Few major destinations along the road. Like the other directional signage in Ireland, the sign is bilingual. To make it clear that Ireland has gone metric, the unit is specified on the sign as well. Even though there are a couple of E-roads in Ireland, such numbers are hardly ever signposted.
Photo: Wouter Jorritsma

Iran
Location: Motorway 1 (Tehran - Rasht)
Two major cities, no road number.
Photo: Vatse

Israel
Location: Hwy 4 (Tel Aviv - Gaza)
Two of the major towns ahead make a very large sign when you have to post everything in three languages. No confirmation of the road you are on.
Photo: Marcel Monterie

Italy
Location: Brescia, A4 (Trieste - Torino)
Reassurance signs are hardly an aspect of Italian motorways. On non-motorways, the road number is usually shown on the kilometer posts, but on motorways they don't. What you do get is a distance to the control city every ten kilometers. It is posted together with a kilometer post every ten kilometers. A rather small sign too. Some road operators place additional distance signs after exits, but this is not to be counted on in Italy.

Jamaica
Location: T1 (Kingston - Ocho Rios)
A number of major destinations ahead. No road number.
Photo: Dwarf

Japan
Location: Chuo Expressway (Tokyo - Nagoya)
Each each exit, you will find a distance sign with the distances to the first two subsequent exits (with their exit numbers) and the control city of the route. As Japanese motorways have no numbers, you won't find a number signposted. But the name under which the expressway is known is not being confirmed either.

Korea
Location: NH1 (Seoul - Busan)
Reassurance signs are placed after every exit, with the route number (including the Asian Highway number, if relevant) confirmed on a separate trailblazer. The towns displayed on the sign are usually the next few exits and the control city of the route.

Latvia
Location: A5 (Riga Southern bypass)
Forward destinations (for some reason it's always two) and the road number. Roads with European numbers also see the European number on the top.
Photo: RipleyLV

Lithuania
Location: A1 (Klaipeda - Vilnius)
Green for motorway, but no other differences when compared to Latvia. Note the European road duplex on this bit of road.
Photo: RipleyLV

Macedonia
Location: E75 (Skopje - Athens)
This sign contains the road number (and as a bonus, a motorway symbol), but most Macedonian distance signs do not. Macedonian reassurance signs refer to one or two major cities ahead. The reference to Athens shows that Macedonia is not afraid of referring to foreign towns or cities at some distance. There aren't many places in Europe where you will find a forward destination at the distance of Athens. Now only for someone to trim the bush ...
Photo: Bojan / Build.com.mk

Malaysia
Location: E1 (Kuala Lumpur - Ipoh)
Road number, major focal points and distances.
Photo: Kekgi

Mexico
Location: MEX-180d (Cancún - Merida)
Each forward destination gets its own route number, even if the route number is generally the same for each of the focal points ahead. In the background, you see a second reassurance sign. Mexicans seem to have difficulty reading more than two destinations at a time, so they split the reassurance sign :-)

Motorway signs
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	Australia - New South Wales Location: M 7 (Westlink - Western Sydney Orbital). To the right of the road number, you'll usually see the road name (like in Queensland), but the name of this road is not signposted for some reason. "Pennant Hills Rd" refers to an intersecting road. As always in Australia, road names are being referred to in allcaps, but whilst they are signposted against a white background on NSW directional signs, they are not signposted on a background on reassurance signs. Also, drivers are being reassured that they are still well on their way to the airport. Oddly, they are not being told how far they are away from it. Photo: Sam Laybutt / Ozroads
Australia - Queensland Location: Pacific Motorway (Brisbane - Sydney) Road numbering new style in Queensland. Prefix and number in yellow will be common throughout Australia in a few years.
	Australia - Victoria Location: B 400 (Gippsland Hwy, Sale - Melbourne via Foster) This sign is from a rural highway rather than from a motorway (or freeway, to use the Australian word). There is no difference with a motorway reassurance sign though. Four or five destinations, including the focal point (Foster) and the remote focal point (Melbourne). Photo: Darren Hodges / Signspotters
Australia - Western Australia Location: SR2 (Perth - Joondalup) The reassurance signs on the motorways in Greater Perth only use the names of the first couple of exits and their road numbers as focal points. On top, the number and (if available) name of the road you are on are indicated. Photo: Paul Rands / Expressway
	Austria Location: Wattens, A12 (Landeck - Rosenheim). At the bottom is the distance to the next exit. München (Munich) and Salzburg are the control cities of this road. Don't expect that each of these destinations always returns on the next distance sign. National and European road numbers are also shown.
Belgium - Flanders Location: E19 (Antwerpen - Rotterdam). Flemish reassurance signs are always placed to the left of the road, i.e. in the middle. Apart from large cities on this road, you will always get the distance to the next exit. Breda is the control city. No road number. Photo: Mediar
	Belgium - Wallonie Location: E429 (Tournai - Brussels) Much like its Flemish counterpart, but placed on the right (and correct :-) side of the road. The next exit is always one of the destinations listed on the reassurance sign. Sometimes, reassurance signs in the Wallonie also list the name of the road, such as "Autoroute des Ardennes". This is above all done after major intersections.
Bulgaria Location: A1 (Sofia - Svilengrad - Istanbul). Major cities along the road (and one on the intersecting A4). No national or European road number, although both are featured on other Bulgarian signs.
	Chile Location: RN5: Ruta Panamericana (Puerto Montt - Santiago - Peruvian border) A somewhat older sign as is evidenced by the use of capitals only. But for the rest, no different than more recent signs with proper capitalisation. Two or three major towns ahead (in Santiago, they would rather show suburbs or intersecting roads). The distance sign does not show the road number. Chile uses separate road markers for that purpose. Photo: Wouter Jorritsma
China Location: Beijing Airport Expressway Distance signs appear after every exit, typically indicating the distances to the next few exits and a control city. The road number is usually confirmed on a separate trailblazer.
	Croatia Location: A7 (Ljubljana - Rijeka) Major destinations. The destination at the top of the sign (Split) is not even on this particular road, so destinations on intersecting roads are also shown. Note the exit symbol behind "Jurdani", denoting that this is the next exit and that the distance indicated is to the exit only. Photo: Rien / Belgian Roads
Czech Republic Location: Praha Jizni Mestro, D1 (Praha - Brno). Road numbers and destination. Brno is the control city; Pruhonice is the next exit. Note the European road triplex. Photo: Ceske Dalnice
	Denmark Location: E45 (Flensburg - Arhus) Couple of major destinations on the road ahead. On a blue background below is the number, the name and distance to the next exit Photo: ABRob
Ethiopia Location: Bishoptu, Addis Abeba - Adama Expressway Names of the three subsequent exits and their distances. Motorways in Ethiopia are not (yet?) numbered. Photo: Vatse
	Finland Location: E75 (Helsinki - Lahti) Finnish national road number, European road number and a number of major destinations. No nearest exit. Photo: Ronan / Schweizer Autobahnen
France Location: A5 (Paris - Langres) Sign shows French national road number (in red) and the European road number (in green). The use of stacks is always a bit tricky in France. It tends to be used for towns in intersecting roads (such as Nancy here), but not always. To a degree, it seems to be a trick to place less important towns on a secondary stack.
	Germany Location: Gau Bickelheim, A61 (Ludwigshafen - Venlo). Sign will usually only show destinations on the present road. If a city is on an intersecting road, the number of this road will be displayed before that city. That is the case here for Mainz. Reassurance signs are the only German signs to list European road numbers.
Greece Location: A2 Having two major destinations on your bi-lingual sign already fills up the sign. Note the odd alignment of the distances, which you would see aligned at the right in most other nations. Interestingly enough, the abbreviation "km" is not written in Greek (even though this is something you see elsewhere in Greece). Photo: E. Gavic / autosnelwegen.net
	Hungary Location: M7 (Budapest - Zagreb) Couple of major cities and the road number on the main sign. The three towns below the road number are on an intersecting road. At the bottom on a separate sign is the distance to the next exit, which is only referred to with its number. As Hungarian exits are numbered by the nearest kilometer post, this bit of information is quite useless, since every single kilometer post already is clear enough as to the distance to exit 39. In the background is something typically Hungarian too: a separate reassurance sign that shows destinations in the somewhat longer distance. Photo: Falusi
Ireland Location: M4 (Kinnegad - Dublin) Few major destinations along the road. Like the other directional signage in Ireland, the sign is bilingual. To make it clear that Ireland has gone metric, the unit is specified on the sign as well. Even though there are a couple of E-roads in Ireland, such numbers are hardly ever signposted. Photo: Wouter Jorritsma
	Iran Location: Motorway 1 (Tehran - Rasht) Two major cities, no road number. Photo: Vatse
Israel Location: Hwy 4 (Tel Aviv - Gaza) Two of the major towns ahead make a very large sign when you have to post everything in three languages. No confirmation of the road you are on. Photo: Marcel Monterie
	Italy Location: Brescia, A4 (Trieste - Torino) Reassurance signs are hardly an aspect of Italian motorways. On non-motorways, the road number is usually shown on the kilometer posts, but on motorways they don't. What you do get is a distance to the control city every ten kilometers. It is posted together with a kilometer post every ten kilometers. A rather small sign too. Some road operators place additional distance signs after exits, but this is not to be counted on in Italy.
Jamaica Location: T1 (Kingston - Ocho Rios) A number of major destinations ahead. No road number. Photo: Dwarf
	Japan Location: Chuo Expressway (Tokyo - Nagoya) Each each exit, you will find a distance sign with the distances to the first two subsequent exits (with their exit numbers) and the control city of the route. As Japanese motorways have no numbers, you won't find a number signposted. But the name under which the expressway is known is not being confirmed either.
Korea Location: NH1 (Seoul - Busan) Reassurance signs are placed after every exit, with the route number (including the Asian Highway number, if relevant) confirmed on a separate trailblazer. The towns displayed on the sign are usually the next few exits and the control city of the route.
	Latvia Location: A5 (Riga Southern bypass) Forward destinations (for some reason it's always two) and the road number. Roads with European numbers also see the European number on the top. Photo: RipleyLV
Lithuania Location: A1 (Klaipeda - Vilnius) Green for motorway, but no other differences when compared to Latvia. Note the European road duplex on this bit of road. Photo: RipleyLV
	Macedonia Location: E75 (Skopje - Athens) This sign contains the road number (and as a bonus, a motorway symbol), but most Macedonian distance signs do not. Macedonian reassurance signs refer to one or two major cities ahead. The reference to Athens shows that Macedonia is not afraid of referring to foreign towns or cities at some distance. There aren't many places in Europe where you will find a forward destination at the distance of Athens. Now only for someone to trim the bush ... Photo: Bojan / Build.com.mk
Malaysia Location: E1 (Kuala Lumpur - Ipoh) Road number, major focal points and distances. Photo: Kekgi
	Mexico Location: MEX-180d (Cancún - Merida) Each forward destination gets its own route number, even if the route number is generally the same for each of the focal points ahead. In the background, you see a second reassurance sign. Mexicans seem to have difficulty reading more than two destinations at a time, so they split the reassurance sign :-)