How to Decode Confusing Hudson Valley Road Signs

Hudson Valley drivers can learn a lot more about a road than just its name by looking at the street signs.

If you spend enough time driving around Dutchess, Orange and Ulster you start picking up patterns. Certain signs look different, some roads feel a little more “official” than others and there is always that one route that takes you exactly where you don’t expect. The truth is there is an actual system behind all of these roads that can be deciphered by simply looking at the signs.

Hudson Valley Road Signs Decoded

In a Facebook post by Orange County Government officials explained that not all signs are created equal. When you see the familiar white route markers or the red and blue interstate shields, you are on a road maintained by New York State. That includes big familiar stretches like Route 17, Route 207 and Interstate 84. These are the roads Albany is responsible for plowing, paving and keeping safe.

County roads are different. In Orange County, they show up as blue and gold signs stamped with a number and the words Orange County. Those aren’t state highways. They are maintained by the county’s Department of Public Works which means everything from resurfacing to ditch cleaning comes right out of Goshen.

State Routes, Interstates and Highways

Once you start noticing the signs, you can figure out what kind of road you are actually driving on. Interstates have that red-and-blue badge and always start with an "I". Interstate 84, Interstate 87 and Interstate 684 all cut through our region. They move traffic fast and link the Hudson Valley to the rest of the Northeast.

State routes are marked with those simple white-numbered shields. Think Route 9, Route 55, Route 32 or Route 299. These can be anything from busy commercial strips lined with diners and shopping centers to quiet backroads that pass farm stands and cornfields.

Highways are the catch-all term. If it is a major travel corridor maintained by the state, it is often called a highway. That is why Route 9 can be Albany Post Road, a state route and a highway depending on where you are driving.

Why It Matters Whether You're on a County or State Road

Knowing which road you're on is important to figuring out who's responsible for it. If a pothole pops up on Route 9, that is the state’s job. If you are bouncing along a crumbling stretch of County Route 1, that is up to your county’s highway department. And if there's cracked pavement on a street named after some sort of tree, most likely that's up to your local city or town to take care of.