The Massachusetts Department of Transportation is taking steps to install federally mandated mile-based exit signs on the commonwealth’s major and limited access highways.
MassDOT will hold a series of public hearings, including one in Worcester next month, to place these signs on I-90, I-93, I-95, Route 3 and I-495.
The project’s estimated cost is $2.8 million, with 90% paid through Federal Highway Safety Improvement Program funds and the remaining 10% through state highway funds.
In 2009, the Federal Highway Administration mandated all states to establish a mile-based exit numbering system.
The conversion will be implemented on a route-by-route basis, starting in Western Massachusetts and moving eastward.
During a transition period, the previous signs will be installed at each converted exit for at least two years.
Installation is expected to begin next summer during off-peak hours, with a scheduled completed date of spring, 2021.
“The conversion to mile-based exit numbers will benefit drivers by providing an obvious and straightforward calculation of driving distances,” said Jonathan Gulliver, MassDOT’s highway administrator, in a statement.
