Skyway sign design visualizer - Northbound (Susana Heights to Libis Baesa)

 To better visualize and refine the concepts I have for Skyway signage, decided to do it based on editing screencaps from the full run from Susana Heights to Balintawak (and back).


All photo captures are from the video here from Kuya Jeff TV: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x3W-Vl_W4U - and as noted before, none of the sign designs I've come up with are currently on the road in real life (so don't drive on Skyway and expect these to be there, lol).


Some general thoughts:

- Where I could, I used the expressway logos the same way that route shields would be used in the US.  Helps with creating visual contrast and makes the big junctions easier to identify.

- Message loading became much more of a concern, especially comparing it to the "next 6 exits" signs that are currently on Skyway in certain places and way too filled with text (some of which are also diminutive signs to begin with!).

- Marking city limits is helpful even with the existence of the SMC location plaques - those don't identify when you've crossed into another city so I tried to emulate the style of city signage found on California freeways.

- In my original designs from February I used more full overhead gantries, while for these it depended on if a hard center barrier existed or not (especially with Ramon S. Ang considering a movable barrier for portions of the road, most likely Pandacan-Quezon Avenue and Del Monte-Libis Baesa).



SLEX Exit 24 - SLEX/Skyway split, Susana Heights



Wide gantry to cover all seven lanes at this interchange (4 for SLEX, 3 for Skyway).

Was debating whether to put a "Class 1 only" tab on the Skyway exit sign, but with the planned Skyway BRT and the fact that NLEX Connector will eventually be a designated truck route, decided not to add those for now.

(For this runthrough, intentionally rounding down the miles conversions so as to provide approximate distances similar to what US drivers might encounter)


0.5 kilometers - 1/3 mile north of Susana Heights





Added airport icon for NAIAX as well as the NAIAX logo.


2 kilometers - 1 1/4 miles north of Susana Heights
Starmall





5 kilometers - 3 1/8 miles north of Susana Heights
Alabang Toll Plaza - north end of Skyway Extension



First standalone mention of the SEMME exit and its destination of Bonifacio Global City.


6 kilometers - 3 3/4 miles north of Susana Heights
Paranaque city limit





10 kilometers - 6 1/4 miles north of Susana Heights



Just past Bicutan onramp.  Decent spot for a northbound pullthrough.


Auxiliary destinations list for SEMME added (Taguig, Pateros, Pasig).  Pasig works slightly better than Ortigas Center due to the fact C-5 access goes to the other side of that district and closer to other portions of Pasig.


12 kilometers - 7 1/2 miles north of Susana Heights
Exit 12, SEMME





12.2 kilometers - 7 1/2 miles north of Susana Heights
Taguig city limit



13 kilometers - 8 miles north of Susana Heights

Added Exit 14 tab to existing NAIAX sign.






14 kilometers - 8 2/3 miles north of Susana Heights
Exit 14, NAIAX


                                      

Used a California-style downward arrow to mark the rightmost lane for the upcoming Magallanes exit.


14.8 kilometers - 9 1/4 miles north of Susana Heights
Exit 15 - Magallanes





Two variations. One is with more info, the second is minimalist to reduce message loading entirely.




15 kilometers - 9 1/3 miles north of Susana Heights
Makati city limit



Added exit tab to Don Bosco sign.


16 kilometers - 10 miles north of Susana Heights





Used an existing sign post (that had its signage and gantry removed in 2019) for an 800m to Don Bosco alert.


16.3 kilometers - 10 1/8 miles north of Susana Heights



replaced the "Don Bosco 500m" sign with "Greenbelt" labeling to help guide drivers towards Ayala Center.


16.8 kilometers - 10 1/2 miles north of Susana Heights
Exit 17A - Don Bosco





17.4 kilometers - 10 3/4 miles north of Susana Heights
Exit 17B - Amorsolo



                                      


17.9 kilometers - 11 1/8 miles north of Susana Heights
Exit 18 - Buendia





18.5 kilometers - 11 1/2 miles north of Susana Heights





Added Exit 21 tab to "Quirino Next Exit" sign.


19.75 kilometers - 12 1/4 miles north of Susana Heights
Manila city limit



Added a sign here noting that Quirino Avenue takes you to Plaza Dilao as well as Ermita and (indirectly) to Santa Ana.  Came up with this as an analogue to the southbound Plaza Dilao exit.

20 kilometers - 12 1/2 miles north of Susana Heights
Heroes Hotel




 First notation of NLEX Connector.  As this is the planned northbound truck route past Paco, little truck route plaque is placed on the design here.

20.6 kilometers - 12 3/4 miles north of Susana Heights
Exit 21 - Quirino Avenue




Added info on gantry pointing out that Nagtahan exit (Exit 22) is the best route to Malacanang, while NLEX Connector (Exit 23) is the only access to Santa Mesa.


21 kilometers - 13 miles north of Susana Heights
Quirino/Osmena bend



Large gantry sign for NLEX Connector as all Class 3 vehicles (large trucks) need to exit there, and also listing San Fernando as a control city for that faster/straighter expressway so that through traffic can already consider it instead of the Quezon City section of Skyway Stage 3.


21.4 kilometers - 13 1/4 miles north of Susana Heights
Plaza Dilao area







Added Otis and San Miguel as auxiliary destinations for Nagtahan exit, as well as warning of Class 3 vehicles needing to use the NLEX Connector.


21.9 kilometers - 13 2/3 miles north of Susana Heights
Exit 22 - Nagtahan








Used the concrete post where "SMC Infrastructure" sign is currently located, to hold up actual exit signs.


22.3 kilometers - 13 7/8 miles north of Susana Heights
just past Nagtahan onramp



Quezon City now sole control city.  Used California-style internal tabs to minimize space used, due to the smaller concrete supports here to hold up signs.  Added San Juan/Sampaloc as auxiliary destinations for NLEX Connector.


22.6 kilometers - 14 miles north of Susana Heights
above M. Carreon



Another warning sign - this time full-width - informing Class 3/truck drivers that they MUST use NLEX Connector.


22.9 kilometers - 14 1/4 miles north of Susana Heights
Exit 23A - NLEX Connector (Tomas Claudio Interchange)






Used a side-left arrow as it looks like there won't be multiple lanes (for now) feeding into the expressway-to-expressway split.  Still using internally-tabbed signs for space savings.


23.2 kilometers - 14 1/2 miles north of Susana Heights
Exit 23B - PAREX




First mention of San Fernando as a control city, now that drivers are past the Tomas Claudio complex.  (This is important so that those who missed the NLEX Connector exit but are heading to NLEX do not suddenly think they need to make a U-turn at Quezon Avenue)  The auxiliary lane from the NLEX Connector-Skyway onramp is the only lane going out towards PAREX so Exit Only signage is used here.


24 kilometers - 15 miles north of Susana Heights
San Juan River section, Punta (Santa Ana)



First mention of San Fernando on three-destinations-list signage. 


26 kilometers - 16 1/8 miles north of Susana Heights
San Juan Bridge/Quezon City city limit





First mention of Quezon Avenue offramp, 3 kilometers away.


26.6 kilometers - 16 1/2 miles north of Susana Heights
Crossing over Aurora Boulevard (near SM Centerpoint)



Mentioning auxiliary destinations for the Quezon Avenue exit, in this case South Triangle (Tomas Morato, Scout Area etc.) and Diliman.


27.5 kilometers - 17 miles north of Susana Heights
Landargun (E. Rodriguez) onramp



First appearance of Sgt. Rivera exit.  As the auxiliary ramp to A. Bonifacio has had construction work started, added mention of 5th Avenue (for the main ramp) for that exit.

28.5 kilometers - 17 3/4 miles north of Susana Heights
Exit 29 - Quezon Avenue





Now that we are firmly in Quezon City, control city switches here to Balintawak.


30.1 kilometers - 18 3/4 miles north of Susana Heights
just past Quezon Avenue onramp




1 km to Del Monte toll plaza, with the three-destinations-list showing eventual NLEX control destinations of Angeles and Baguio, as well as Bocaue (where Philippine Arena is located).


31 kilometers - 19 1/4 miles north of Susana Heights
Del Monte Toll Plaza




31.3 kilometers - 19 1/2 miles north of Susana Heights
Araneta/Sgt. Rivera bend




Port of Manila and Caloocan listed as auxiliary destinations for the Sgt. Rivera offramps.


32.3 kilometers - 20 miles north of Susana Heights
Exit 32 - Sgt. Rivera/5th Avenue







For the first mention of the A. Bonifacio exit, mentioned Balintawak right away as it is a control destination.

32.8 kilometers - 20 3/8 miles north of Susana Heights
Sgt. Rivera/A. Bonifacio bend



Listing Monumento and Roosevelt as auxiliary destinations for the A. Bonifacio exit.


33 kilometers - 20 1/2 miles north of Susana Heights
500m to A. Bonifacio ramp




First mention of Bocaue as control destination (since next exit is for Balintawak).  Also adding "TO NLEX" on the pullthrough.


33.6 kilometers - 20 7/8 miles north of Susana Heights
Exit 34 - A. Bonifacio Avenue (Balintawak/EDSA)




35 kilometers - 21 3/4 miles north of Susana Heights
Caloocan city limit (just north of Camachile Flyover)





NMIA now the control destination for Skyway as all traffic towards Bocaue/San Fernando will be exiting at NLEX.


35.5 kilometers - 22 miles north of Susana Heights
200m from NLEX ramp



Valenzuela and Novaliches can be accessed by taking NLEX to the Smart Connect Interchange (this is also helpful for those who missed the A. Bonifacio exit and thus also missed the Camachile Flyover).


35.77 kilometers - 22 1/4 miles north of Susana Heights
Exit 36 - NLEX





Current northern terminus of Skyway.


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