Unfunded Mandate Forces Kent to Update Street Signs

Thousands of Kent's street signs must be updated or replaced by 2018, according to a new national standard set by the U.S. Department of Transportation.

City workers are in the midst of changing the faces of stop signs and the more than 5,000 other street signs as part of the new mandate.

The new requirements are part of an update to the federal Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices. The changes, among other reasons, are to help increase night-time visibility and the reflective nature of the signs to help older drivers.

Kent Service Director Gene Roberts said crews are replacing stop signs 25 at a time by removing old signs, installing new ones, refacing the old signs and reinstalling them until all the signs are updated. In total, he estimates the city has between 5,000 and 8,000 traffic signs in the public right of way.

"We are working with a local vendor to develop an inventory of all signs," Roberts said.

The inventory is part of the requirement that all public agencies with street signs catalogue each sign and develop a plan addressing the minimum upgrade requirements.

The city must have its plan in place by January 2012, according to the U.S. DOT. By January 2015, the city must comply with the new reflectivity requirements for "most of their traffic signs they have installed, including all red and white or white and black 'regulatory' signs (such as STOP signs and speed limit signs, yellow and black 'warning' signs, and ground-mounted green and white 'guide' signs (except street name signs), according to the DOT.

By January 2018, all public agencies must comply with the new reflectivity requirements for overhead guide signs and all street name signs.

The DOT pointed to a number of state and federal programs as potential sources to help pay for the cost of the upgrades.

Roberts said they won't know the cost to the city for all the udpates until the sign inventory is complete.

"The city of Kent's intent is to have our plan in place by the end of this year and at the same time start the changeover to the new retroreflectivity requirements," Roberts said.