California State Route 110 Pasadena Freeway sign

Description

The Arroyo Seco Parkway, connecting Pasadena to downtown Los Angeles, opened in 1940 as one of America’s first freeways. This highway was state of the art when it opened, yet over time as the art of highway design has developed, the highway remained more or less the same. Its 45-mph design speed and the hard right turns required to enter or exit the freeway seem antiquated today. Some drivers used to more modern highways might find a drive on this one absolutely terrifying!

Initially, the Arroyo Seco Parkway was a part of Route 66, but as time went on it carried US-6, US-99, and California State Route 11 at various times. In the 1964 renumbering of California highways, it became SR-110, the number it carries today. From 1954 to 2010, the highway carried the name Pasadena Freeway. The name reverted to Arroyo Seco Parkway in 2010. This name change coincided with its addition to the National Register of Historic Places; this designation ensures that the highway will remain a time capsule of early freeway design for years to come. The highway is also a National Scenic Byway, one of only 150 in the whole nation.

Our California State Route 110 Pasadena freeway sign is a recreation of one of the signs that was mounted to the south portal of Figueroa Street Tunnel No. 1, along the northbound Pasadena Freeway, until late 2008. It indicates the three lanes thru traffic should follow to continue northward along the freeway past the junction with Interstate 5. The original sign slightly differs from official Caltrans standard in a number of ways; all of the unique foibles are faithfully recreated in our revival of this classic sign.

The original sign was a colossal 22½ ft. × 7½ ft. Our scaled-down replica is available in a range of much more manageable sizes, from 21 in. × 7 in. to 81 in. × 27 in. Each size includes pre-drilled mounting holes. Our rendition of this sign is flat printed on heavy 14-gauge steel. It is non-reflective, just like the original, and can be displayed indoors or outdoors. Add this piece of California transportation history to your collection today! (Looking for another freeway sign we don’t have listed here? We can bring any sign back to life! Just contact Jake to get started on your custom order.)