DOCUMENTING SIGNALS
OF
VIRGINIA
OF
VIRGINIA
Welcome to the branch that this site was originally created for -- Documenting Signals of Virginia! This is my home state, which is why it's my main focus for documenting old signals. I am in the process of creating a map of EVERY SINGLE SIGNAL in the state of Virginia, and intend to document all that are old and/or of some interest. Documenting entails taking thorough pictures and videos, and displaying them on this site along with detailed information about everything. When others photograph signals, they may take a couple of each signal, often only a few per intersection. And, in most cases, people just acknowledge the signals without caring enough to photograph them. Well, that's not the case here. As previously mentioned, I have listings of every known signal in the state. I take dedicated trips around Virginia to document all of the old signals in each area. I always photograph thoroughly, getting every angle of every signal, and often end up with a hundred or more per intersection. And, they're all presented here for the public to enjoy. It's a time-consuming practice, but I like to do it. I'm always adding new content here as I get around more.
I have all of this documentation divided into several sections below based on the different levels of signal maintenance jurisdiction, such as city or county. Under those, you will find each specific municipality or district listed with their own page, where you can see what I've documented there. You can preview the best-of pictures in the sample albums next to the sub-sections below -- you can click on one of those pictures to jump straight to the page it's from, or you can just start browsing through the categories. Regardless, take your time and enjoy; there's plenty to see.
The sections below are as follows, separated into the different maintenance jurisdiction levels. See each one for more information.
-- All Independent Cities
-- Applicable Incorporated Towns
-- All Split-Jurisdiction County Regions
-- All State-Maintained County District Regions
-- The District of Columbia
-- Applicable Private Properties
ALL INDEPENDENT
CITIES
CITIES
Virginia is unlike any other state in that its constitution, modified after the Civil War, establishes all incorporated cities as being independent cities. An independent city is different from a normal city in that it is entirely separate from any surrounding jurisdictions. In other states, a city is still, in some way or another, part of the adjacent/surrounding county. In Virginia, they are an entirely separate entity for all governmental purposes. Every city in Virginia is an independent city, and of the 41 independent cities in the country, 38 of them are in Virginia. An Virginian independent city could be seen as the equivalent of a county in other states, and a city in another state could be seen as equivalent to an incorporated town in Virginia.
For our purposes, this means that every city in Virginia maintains all of their own traffic signals. Every city has some signals of interest, and they often contain the most interesting signals out of all of the different jurisdictions. Click ENTER below to start browsing.
For our purposes, this means that every city in Virginia maintains all of their own traffic signals. Every city has some signals of interest, and they often contain the most interesting signals out of all of the different jurisdictions. Click ENTER below to start browsing.
APPLICABLE INCORPORATED
TOWNS
TOWNS
Incorporated towns in Virginia are consolidated communities with their own partial government. They are still part of the surrounding county, which fulfills some of its responsibilities. Because of this, some towns choose to have their own traffic department, while others let the county (and therefore VDOT) take care of it. That's why the title here says "applicable"; only towns that maintain their own signals are listed here. Any signals of interest in towns that don't, can be found under the VDOT District jurisdiction section below. There are 191 incorporated towns in Virginia. I have determined, based on observing the types of signals used in each one, that 72 of those maintain their own signals. All of those 72 will be listed on this page; however, not all of them have any signals of particular interest -- those that don't won't be documented, and will be listed separately. An incorporated town is different from an independent city in that a city is entirely its own jurisdiction while a town is partially under county jurisdiction -- an incorporated town is also different from an unincorporated town, in that an unincorporated one is not official; it has no government of its own and is maintained entirely by the county (and therefore none are listed separately from their county districts).
Towns, especially small ones, that maintain their own signals can often be the source of the oldest ones around. Click the button below to start browsing.
Towns, especially small ones, that maintain their own signals can often be the source of the oldest ones around. Click the button below to start browsing.
ALL
SPLIT JURISDICTION
COUNTY REGIONS
SPLIT JURISDICTION
COUNTY REGIONS
Except for the special case of independent cities, the state is divided entirely into counties. In general, counties are collectively maintained by the statewide Virginia Department of Transportation -- except for two special cases. Arlington County and Henrico County are the only two counties in the state which aren't (entirely) state-maintained; like an independent city, they have their own independent traffic departments. However, this only applies to county (co) roads, while the state routes are still VDOT-maintained. Hence, in these special cases, they are split-jurisdiction. These pages will include all signals within these counties, regardless of who maintains them (though that will be specified in each case), even though the state-jurisdiction portions are maintained by the same VDOT district that maintains the surrounding counties. The rest of the signals maintained by these districts can be seen in the section below this.
For some reason, it seems that state maintenance in split-jurisdiction counties is far more...well, lazy...compared to on any other VDOT roads, especially in the case of Henrico. Henrico contains by far the oldest signals on any VDOT roads in the state, and some very interesting ones at that. Click ENTRR below to start browsing.
For some reason, it seems that state maintenance in split-jurisdiction counties is far more...well, lazy...compared to on any other VDOT roads, especially in the case of Henrico. Henrico contains by far the oldest signals on any VDOT roads in the state, and some very interesting ones at that. Click ENTRR below to start browsing.
ALL
STATE‒MAINTAINED
COUNTY DISTRICT REGIONS
STATE‒MAINTAINED
COUNTY DISTRICT REGIONS
All 95 counties in Virginia are collectively maintained by the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT). VDOT is divided into nine districts, which maintain their own different clusters of counties. They are all part of the same organization and theoretically follow the same standards, but each district has their own separate fleets and utilizes standards that differ slightly from each other, so that each district has a unique recognizable style -- you can always immediately tell when you're entering a new district based on the signals they use. NOTE: the exceptions are two counties which are part VDOT-maintained and part self-maintained, which are listed separately in the section above this.
While VDOT roads have mostly generic and modern signals, a few old and unusual ones are still hanging around. Click ENTER below to start browsing.
While VDOT roads have mostly generic and modern signals, a few old and unusual ones are still hanging around. Click ENTER below to start browsing.
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
The signals of Washington D.C., while it isn't actually part of Virginia, can be found here. D.C. has its own district-wide traffic department and has very unique standards, including grey signals and walk phase countdowns. They also have an interesting history, and a large quantity of old signals still in service. Click ENTER below to start browsing.
ANY APPLICABLE
PRIVATE PROPERTIES
PRIVATE PROPERTIES
This section is for any private properties with traffic signals which aren't maintained by a government municipality, such as those in certain shopping malls, on Driver's Ed courses, or at certain fire departments. You can find a few old and very strange signals in these places. Click ENTER below to start browsing!