Mark J. Price: What does this sign mean?
It’s not a typical merge sign.
Beacon Journal reader Mark Kochheiser is concerned about a traffic sign he’s noticed on highways in Ohio. It’s an arrow with two tails, sort of like an upside-down “Y.”
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The marker bears a passing resemblance to a merge, but it’s posted where the right lane of one highway joins the left lane of another highway.
“You’re driving along in the right lane and come upon this sign,” he said. “The lane you are using is about to merge with the passing lane of the freeway located to your right. To me this is an accident waiting to happen.”
Kochheiser contacted the Ohio Department of Transportation in Columbus to see which driver has the right of way. The answer: No one.
He learned that the sign is intended to warn motorists that “merging movements will be encountered.” The state does not dictate who has the right of way at such “merging points.” Both drivers must accommodate each other.
And aren’t drivers just so accommodating these days?
It’s under ODOT Sign Code No. W4-H1 in the Ohio Manual of Uniform Traffic Control Devices, which is not to be confused with W4-1 (merge), W4-2 (lane ends), W4-3 (added lane), W4-5 (entering roadway merge), W4-6 (entering roadway added lane), W4-4p (cross traffic does not stop), W4-4aP (traffic from left/right does not stop) or W4-4bP (oncoming traffic does not stop).
“This sounded so stupid to me,” Kochheiser said. “And dangerous.”
When we asked ODOT for clarification, District 4 official Justin Chesnic shed some light.
“That sign is for what we call an ‘inside merge,’ ” he wrote. “It’s when we have more lanes coming into an area than we have lanes to receive them (for example two sets of two lanes coming together but only 3 downstream lanes available).
“One way to drop the lane is to merge the inside lanes together as the two routes come together. Both inside lanes have to merge and neither lane has the right of way.”
Fortunately, the sign isn’t that common. Unfortunately, there’s one in Akron.
“We do not do it very often … but we do have a few locations where we do,” Chesnic wrote. “One area we are using it is on the Kenmore Leg.”
Of all the places. We should have guessed, right?
Sure enough, there’s an orange sign that warns drivers that “merging movements will be encountered” as they hurtle toward Kenmore. It’s like a scene from a “Mad Max” movie.
Kochheiser checked it out on Google Street View and saw images from last year: A tractor-trailer traveling west on Interstate 76 is merging with a glass-hauling truck coming up the ramp from Interstate 77.
“You can see how close they are as they are jockeying for position in the merge area,” he said.
Be careful, drivers. Heed the sign. Accommodate and stay safe.
A leg up on Kenmore
Speaking of the Kenmore Leg, did you see that another big construction project is scheduled?
ODOT has announced plans to spend $100 million to replace the pavement base, widen the lanes and upgrade the bridges and ramps on Interstate 76 between the I-76/I-77 interchange and the I-76/I-277-U.S. 224 interchange.
Work could begin in 2026. Too bad it couldn’t have been done THE LAST THREE TIMES the Kenmore Leg had to be closed for construction. Is it ever going to end?
Reader Walter Baughman wondered if Akron was unique in using “leg” for the official name of highway segments. Apparently not.
Jamaica boasts the North-South Leg and the East-West Leg of Highway 2000.
I wonder how often they have to be shut down?
‘X’ marks the spot
When I recently admitted that I didn’t understand the abbreviation PLX for Portage Lakes, readers offered some assistance.
“If you understand OBX as abbreviation for ‘Outer Banks,’ then you should understand PLX as abbreviation for ‘Portage Lakes,’ ” noted Roger Chaplin of Akron. “Maybe neither one makes sense to you. They make sense to me. Reading the X at the end makes me hear (in my head, anyway) the "ks" sound at the end.”
At least I’m consistent, Roger. I’ve seen those oval OBX stickers on car windows. I thought it was a rock band. And I’ve been to the Outer Banks!
Bill Marting of Akron has observed decals for FLX, which stands for the Finger Lakes of New York.
People also display stickers that abbreviate countries they’ve visited. For example, AUS for Australia, GR for Greece, SE for Sweden and NL for the Netherlands.
“I admit to being stumped for quite some time by ‘CHOC’ — what the heck country is that?” he wrote.
I think Bill is joking, but for those who don’t know, CHOC is a decal for Malley’s Chocolates. Drivers can win a prize if a Malley’s representative spots them with a CHOC sticker on their car.
Karen L. Miller doesn’t mind the PLX abbreviation, but she does have a pet peeve.
“What's really annoying to we Portage Lakes lifers is the reference to our area as ‘the’ Portage Lakes,” she wrote. “To us, it is Portage Lakes.
“Every time the Beacon Journal refers to our area as ‘the’ Portage Lakes it serves to separate the newspaper from our community.”
Please forgive us, Karen. We’re from “the Akron.”
Your point is well taken, although I think it’s OK to say “the Lakes,” as in: “We’re going to the Lakes this weekend to drink heavily.”
Sort of related: It bugs me when people say “the Summit Mall” instead of Summit Mall.
Mark J. Price can be reached at mprice@thebeaconjournal.com.
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This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: What does this sign mean in Ohio?
