States

This page is still in early stages of development. Only select states are currently available
Alabama · Alaska · Arizona · Arkansas · California · Colorado · Connecticut · Delaware · DC · Florida · Georgia · Hawaii · Idaho · Illinois · Indiana · Iowa · Kansas · Kentucky · Louisiana · Maine · Maryland · Massachusetts · Michigan · Minnesota · Mississippi · Missouri · Montana · Nebraska · Nevada · New Hampshire · New Jersey · New Mexico · New York · North Carolina · North Dakota · Ohio · Oklahoma · Oregon · Pennsylvania · Rhode Island · South Carolina · South Dakota · Tennessee · Texas · Utah · Vermont · Virginia · Washington · West Virginia · Wisconsin · Wyoming

Notes:
Alaska coverage is mostly around Anchorage and Fairbanks
Low quality / fogged / night city coverage is generally Fairbanks
Hwy 2 between Anchorage and Fairbanks has mostly low quality coverage
Hwy 6 and Hwy 3 north of Fairbanks has higher quality coverage, often with unpaved roads
Juneau has flags for every state along Egan Dr

Alaska Coverage Map

Yellow guardrail bollards on state highways

White mountains / yellow foliage

Low quality conifers and birches

Large numbers behind signs

Yellow markings on power poles, Juneau

Orange parking meters, Anchorage

Transit

Juneau | Capital Transit

Fairbanks | MACS

Anchorage | People Mover

Notes:
The yellow-green-blue pattern is one of the most distinctive US license plates
Yellow/black warning signs are usually found at T-junctions of state/county roads
The arrow above two black stripe square pattern is unique to Alabama
Not all stop signs have red markings on the posts

Yellow/Green/Blue Alabama plate

T-Intersection warning

Rural red stop sign posts

TODO AR

Notes:
Most city and town coverage is Phoenix, Tucson, or Yuma
The black grid on yellow T-intersection warning isn't always present, and is sometimes abbreviated

Intersection warning

Plate with purple in lower left corner

Saguaros near Mexican border

Distances in Km near S border

Phoenix Metro Area

Notes:
The Phoenix metro area includes several large cities, including Mesa, Scottsdale, Tempe, Chandler, Gilbert, and Glendale
Side streets near downtown Phoenix have white street signs and stop signs have red stripes

Phoenix city symbol

City name on trash bins

Abbreviated Intersection warning

White street signs / red stripe stop signs

Address with arrow on street signs

Crosswalk traffic light, Scottsdale

Notes:
Three yellow strips are usually California, but have also been spotted in Oregon, Utah, and Washington

3 yellow stripes on wooden utility poles

Yellow crosswalks in the south

Hydrogen fueling stations

Truck Terminal Access sign

Fastrak Tollroads

Unique Bollards

White paddle with orange reflectors

White paddle with white reflectors

Notes:
The Rocky Mountains run through the western half of the state
The eastern half of the state is mostly dry grasslands
Colorado bollards generally have dark green posts
Yellow sign posts aren't common, but can identify Colorado from similar states
License plate colors can discern southern Colorado from New Mexico, especially near Alamosa
Green posts can look brown when back-lit

Colorado Coverage

Yellow sign posts

3 circle reflectors somewhat common

Eastern Colorado

Coverage in the east is mostly US highways marked with green post bollards
Small towns consist of 1 or 2-story brick or stone buildings with grid-based concrete streets
The main streets of these towns are usually marked US or State highways

Eastern Grasslands

State Highway Marker

Green Post Bollards

Eastern Colorado Architecture

Main Street marked US Highway

Denver

Most Colorado city coverage is in the Denver metro area
Near the city center, street signs list the address number separated by a white line
Many street signs include images- see City Symbols for Denver specific street sign meta
Denver has about 30 labeled bike routes between Lakewood and Aurora

Denver street sign

Bike route sign

Street sign with image

ExpressToll in Denver

The Ride

Northwestern Colorado

North and northwest Colorado are scrub deserts, similar to Utah and Wyoming
US highways are marked by white circle bollards with brownish posts
Wyoming also uses brown post/white circle bollards in similar landscapes
A brown post bollard with 2 yellow circles means you're in Wyoming, not Colorado

Scrub Desert

Bollards in the north/northwest

Western Colorado

Western Colorado goes from rolling hills to steep gradients depending on what section of the Rockies you're in
The only interstate freeway through the Rocky Mtns in Colorado is I-70
Yellow foliage can help distinguish Colorado mountains from Wyoming, Montana, and Idaho
The quaking aspens at high altitudes can look similar to birches at more northern latitudes

Yellow foliage can look like Alaska

Steeper gradient hills in the Rockies

Unique Bollards

Green reflectors are used on I-70 through the Rocky Mtns
The Grand Mesa Scenic Byway has its own unique double white diamond bollard
Idaho also uses green post bollards on a small section of US-26 east of Shoshone

Green marker base, right side

Green marker base, left side

Green circle at rail end

3 green circles at rail start

Grand Mesa Scenic Byway

Notes:

Architecture

Wood siding and porch awning

Vertical stacks and balconies

Notes:
Washington DC is a small diamond-shaped area between Maryland and Virginia
The street sign layout is unique, with a cardinal direction and a smaller green numbered box below
Cardinal directions are relative to the center of the city
It is divided into wards / zones, usually posted on parking advisory signs
Streets named for US states are major diagonals
Historically, DC locations near the border have caused trouble with the state-streak algorithm

Unique road sign layout (see notes)

Zone numbers on parking signs

DC Zone Map

Compact yards / Closely spaced housing

Multiple road intersections / non-right angles

Metro

Circulator / Metrobus signs

Red / Grey / Blue Metro buses

Red / Grey / Yellow Circulator buses

Red / Grey taxis

Notes:
Delaware has a combination of midwestern US and coastal New England vibes
Almost half of Delaware is farmland, primarily wheat and corn
DART is also the acronym for Dallas and Des Moines area transit
WSFS bank also serves Pennsylvania and New Jersey

Black / gold license plates

302 Area Code

Red diamonds at T-intersections

Fire signal sign by Fire Departments

State horse symbol

DART buses and signs

"Except Left Turns" partition on signs

WSFS bank

Blue / gold combination on signs

Corn and wheat fields

Horizontal wood siding architecture

Old brick and stone architecture

Notes:
Parts of Florida can look similar to southern California
California requires front plates, but Florida does not
Florida license plates are somewhat common in the northeastern states
Horse trailers are in the north and panhandle

Palm Trees with white trunks

Penny Tax road sign

Southern Florida

Notes:
Panther Crossing and Night Speed Limits are near the Everglades
Night Speed Limits are also used in Montana
White marks on Miami street signs are generally in residential areas and/or grid roads
Many Miami road signs have diamond stickers of different colors, depending on coverage year

Night Speed Limit

Panther Crossing sign

White marks on street signs, Miami

Diamond stickers behind signs, Miami

Palm tree symbol on trash bins, Miami

Toll Roads

Lee Way

Sun Pass

E Pass

Notes:
Near the Tennessee border, you'll see rolling hills and deciduous trees.
Soil is red in the north and west, becoming sandy toward the eastern coast.
Southern forests are dominated by pines and little to no lower level greenery.
Large areas of young pine trees are southern Georgia man-made logging pine forests.

Peach Pass

Appalachians / red soil in the north

Pine trees / sandy soil toward the south

Red soil in the north and west

Man-made pine forest in the south

Pine forests with no greenery

Pine forest with little low-level greenery

Notes:
Brick and horizontal wood siding is common across the state
Prominent 2-3 story brick/wood panel houses in a deciduous/pine mixed forest is almost always an Atlanta suburb.
Pine needle piles / yard garnishing can differentiate Atlanta suburbs from Memphis suburbs.

Wood horizontal siding

Brick architecture

Large houses and pines outside Atlanta

Orange yards and pine needle piles

Wavy mountains and low clouds

Structures layered in low hills

Royal Poinciana trees

Yellow plates on wooden utility poles

Volcanic soil

Very red dirt on Molokaʻi

Blue stop signs

TODO IA

Notes:
Idaho coverage is almost exclusively on the western side of the state
Coverage is roughly split into north and south sections by the Salmon Challis National Forest
The north end consists of I-90 and US-95 that cross through Coeur d'Alene
The southern coverage is centered around I-84, I-86, and I-15
White square bollards look similar to those in Utah, but have one bolt instead of two

Red / White / Black plate

208 Area Code

Wooden Signposts

White square/diamond bollards

Snow poles

Green bollards near Shoshone

Grasslands / Rolling Hills

Southwest Farmlands

Cities

Pocatello symbol, older coverage

Pocatello symbol, newer coverage

Yellow stickers, Lewiston

Pocatello / Post Falls white stickers

Yellow plated signs, Boise suburbs

White border / unique layout, Twin Falls

Trash Bins

Notes:
Republic is also used in Nampa, along with BFI.
Boise also uses Allied Waste, particularly for recyclables.

Boise | Republic

Coeur d'Alene | CDA

Idaho Falls

Lewiston | Sunshine

Meridian | SSC

Pocatello

Twin Falls | PSI

TODO IL

Numbers behind many signs

Blue markers

TODO KS

TODO KY

4-Square Registration sticker

New Orleans, Louisiana Registration sticker

New Orleans circle registration sticker

Louisiana uses Parishes, not Counties

Notes:
Granite curbs appear all across New England- notably New Hampshire- but it is used more in Massachusetts than any other state

Red Inspection sticker

Green Inspection sticker

Granite curbs

Notes:
Maryland license plates are also fairly common in Washington DC

Red/Yellow stripe on license plates

Red/Yellow flag on signs

Yellow sticker behind some signs

City Specific

Notes:

Street sweeping sign, Hagerstown

Numbered lamp posts, Hagerstown

Notes:
New Hampshire has similar guardrail bollards and yellow maintenance road markings
Emergency routes are always near interstate highways
Maine has both snowmobile and ATV access routes
Most state law signs are yellow over white; Maine uses red over white
Dont forget about windshield stickers!

Red bollard at guardrail start

Green bollard at guardrail end

Yellow diamond with nine circles

207 Area Code

Yellow marks near drains

Yellow drain mark without guardrail

Green intersection islands

Brown rusty signposts

Red state law signs

Lettered Emergency Routes

Blue local directional signs

Bridge marker

Town Line sign

Horizontal wood siding architecture

Snowmobile Access Routes

Bike route sign

TODO MI

Unique Bollards

Elongated green paddle

Notes:
Most road signs will have two legs with a cross-brace behind each sign
The 183 Express Toll in Dallas has the same color pattern as the MN state highway sign

Freeway inner rails rounded & connect

Diagonal braces behind signs

3 striped marker on road signs

Dallas Express Toll also uses blue/yellow

Unique Bollards

Rail start

Rail end

yellow paddle with black tip

white paddle with black tip

TODO MO

Unique Bollards

Rounded white flag

Two rounded white flags

Rounded yellow flag

Rounded yellow rail flag

TODO MS

Notes:
Montana has several different types of license plate patterns and colors
White separators are used sporadically in other areas, use with other meta
Montana and Nevada are the two western states with prominent casinos
Dakota also has billboards in North Dakota

White diamond bollards

Blue, red, or green stickers behind signs

Solid blue license plates

T-intersection sign, older coverage

T-intersection sign, newer coverage

406 Area Code

Commercial casinos

Paved BIA routes

Dakota company billboards

Grassy plains on the east side

Exposed rock / sparse pines in the west

TODO NC

Notes:
Yellow intersection posts are common in Dickinson
Dakota also has billboards in Montana
Maryland also has a state law to display the MIA / POW flag in some areas, and some states fly it by choice
Stop signs aren't always labeled with a number

Blue / Orange license plates

Dakota company billboards

MIA POW flag flown at govt buildings

701 Area Code

Major intersections marked yellow

Black-tipped ditch marker

Black numbers behind stop signs

White or yellow ring markers

County roads marked "Cty"

Curved street lamp shape

Emergency snow route sign

Small towns with wide roads

Snow coverage on the east side

Green rolling hills on the west side

Bollards

Notes:
Utah has similar orange bollards, but with a shorter flag

White diamond (1 or 2)

Yellow diamond (1 or 2)

Orange base at rail end

Orange base at rail start

TODO NE

Unique Bollards

3 blue circles

3 blue circles on flat plate

3 yellow circles on flat plate

Notes:
Guardrail start and end bollards looks similar to Maine
Yellow maintenance markings are dashed in New Hampshire, solid in Maine
Windshield stickers can be different colors depending on coverage year
Spaulding Turnpike, Everett Turnpike, and Blue Star Turnpike all run through New Hampshire

US highway mile markers

Interstate mile markers

White bollards

Windshield sticker and blue / green plate

Red bollards at guardrail start

Green bollards at guardrail end

Yellow dashed maintenance markings

ATV Routes

603 Area Code

Mossy rocky outcroppings

Horizontal wood siding architecture

Red Inspection sticker

Yellow Inspection sticker

Blue Inspection sticker

Highway symbols on street signs

Notes:
Albuquerque and Santa Fe both have a mountain range to the east of the city
Pine trees with dark trunks can be found throughout the southwestern US

Large white square stickers behind signs

Red and white striped barriers

Cyan license plates

Yellow license plates

Horizontal traffic signals

Adobe style architecture

Gravel and dirt yards

Plains with sparse shrubs

Desert mesas

Dark trunk pine trees at higher altitudes

Bollards

Notes:
Circle bollards on state highways are white on one side and yellow on the other
Three yellow circles marking drainage also appears in Oklahoma

Yellow / white circles (see notes)

Two yellow circles, interstate

Two white circles, interstate

Three yellow circles marking drainage

White rectangles, interstate

Notes:
Mile markers list the road name, the county, and distance. A list of county abbreviations can be found here
The thin metal crossbeams are more common in towns and cities

Scrub desert

Blue over Brown & Brown over Blue plates

White mile markers

T-junction diamond with red reflectors

V-Shaped diagonal supports

Thin metal crossbeams behind signs

Traffic signals over street and on post

Lights and Traffic Signals over same street

Bollards have black plating with 4 bolts

Highway line marker with 4 bolts

Unique Bollards

White flag on black plate

White flag on black plate variation

Yellow flag on black plate

Notes:
Speed limits can be listed as "Town", "City", "Area", "Village", and "State" speed limits
New York often combines bollards by stacking them on the same post
The top half of the state is mountain wilderness; most coverage is at or below Rochester and Syracuse

Orange license plates

Speed limit sign variations (see notes)

Bollard combinations

White stickers with a black line, Albany

Green interstate marker

Tollroad marker

Mile marker on crossover

Bollards

Notes:

Green bollard, rail start

Green bollard, alternative

White bollard, exit lane

Double white bollard

Double yellow, left side rail

Yellow bollard combination

White marker, right side rail

White bollards, right side

TODO OH

Notes:
Cross-braces behind signs are most apparent on two or more signs arranged horizontally

Blue/white license plates

T-intersection marker

Freeway concrete segments

Cross-braces behind signs

Green stop sign markers

Alternative stop sign markers

Bollards

Notes:
Three yellow circles marking drainage also appears in New Mexico

black housing on rail flags

Blue capped rails among yellow flags

3 yellow bollards marking drainage

Paddle bollard with grey post

Blue marking on white bollard

Yellow Pacificorp plates on utility poles

Unique Bollards

White reflector on white paddle

Yellow reflector on yellow paddle

Double Emissions stickers

Blue Township signs

Notes:
Providence street signs include the neighborhood

401 Area Code

RIPTA signs and buses

"RIEMA" on the bottom of Evac signs

Scenic Routes

Various types of rock walls

Blue signs in Newport & Middletown

Providence Neighborhoods

TODO SC

TODO SD

Green bird symbol on some road signs

Historical markers with 3 stars

Redbud trees

Nuclear plants in the SE

Walls of flat rocks are common in the east

Notes:
The western and middle parts of the state are generally flat farmlands
Rolling hills form in the eastern third and build into the Appalachians in the far east
The Appalachians look very similar north to south i.e. TN mtns look just like PA/NY mtns
A good rule of thumb for Tennessee is the more rolling hills you see, the farther east you are.

Appalachians roads

TN mountains are more rolling hills

2-prong forked highway signs

Freeway exit U-Turn lane

Diagonal freeway sign extenders

Notes:
Mountains directly east of a city or suburbs means the Salt Lake City area from Ogden to Provo
On stretches of highway, bollards can help distinguish Utah from other similar looking states
Rounded sign supports are similar to those found in Texas and Wyoming
Many 4-way intersections have flat street lights over one street and a pole with a traffic lights over the other
Rocky Mountain Power division of Pacificorp also serves Wyoming and Idaho
Salt Lake City area codes 801 and 385 are found state-wide, not just in the city area

Orange & blue license plate

Street light 90 degrees from traffic light

2 or 3 braces on highway signs

Rounded Y-bar sign support

Yellow Pacificorp plates on utility poles

Larger pointier mtns near Salt Lake City

Smaller rounded mtns near Provo / Ogden

Bollards

Notes:
Utah uses two variations of white bollards: metal and plastic
Idaho uses a similar metal square white bollard, but they have one bolt instead of two
Bollards may have orange snow poles with snow coverage
North Dakota also uses orange bollards, but only on rail ends

3 yellow bollard on rail ends

3 yellow bollard sun-bleached

White bollard with 2 black screws

Orange back-plate

Black back-plate

Black / orange back-plate together

White on black bollard in the SW

White on orange bollard in the SW

Red Safety sticker

Notes:
The best clues for Vermont are windshield stickers, green license plates, and white markers behind signs
The bottom number on green bridge signs is the route number
New York has similar green markers on sign posts
Pennsylvania also has township routes (TRs)

Green license plates

Sign markers on post, green

White stickers behind signs

802 Area Code

Green bridge marker

Township Routes

Interstate mile marker with decimal

Minimum limit 40 on interstates

State road signs are not always green

Bollards

Notes:
Intermediate mile markers show the mile on top and the decimal beneath

Blue diamond bollard at guardrail start

Green diamond bollard at guardrail end

Yellow rectangle bollards, left side

Intermediate mile markers, right side

Yellow diamond bollards, left side

Yellow diamond bollards, crossover

TODO WA

Unique Bollards

Flat brown base

TODO WI

Notes:
Dashed double yellow lines are used in many states, but are much more common in West Virginia
State name does not appear on interstate shields when displayed on the green overhead billboards