Century-old suburban Philly signs run afoul of new federal requirement

The small green-and-gold signs that have marked streets in a tony Philadelphia suburb for almost a century have run into trouble.

The old signs replaced the hodgepodge of wooden street markers in Lower Merion Township beginning in 1913, and they soon became a model for planned communities across the nation.

But the Federal Highway Administration has issued regulations requiring bigger, more readable road-name signs by 2018. Lower Merion Township opposes the change based on cost and the right to preserve its historic landscape.

Signs in other suburban areas such as West Chester and New Hope are not as old but leaders say replacing them would sap money and manpower. And some, in those communities and others around the country, say the mandate is symptomatic of too much government.

More info and pictures from philly.com.