Wayfinding Signs
Wayfinding, or directional, signs help cyclists and pedestrians more easily navigate Arlington's 100 miles of multi-use trails, on-street bike lines and designated bike routes, and its commercial districts.
Building Arlington's Wayfinding System
The County reviewed best practices for wayfinding in other jurisdictions. Safety played a large role in the creation and 
design of the wayfinding system. The new system conforms with national standards for directional signage and uses similar materials, layouts, and fonts as roadway signs to increase visibility. Frequent spacing of signs will increase cyclist and pedestrian confidence when in an unfamiliar area, and each sign reinforces location, distance, and destination information.
Location Guidelines
- Major Destinations and Routes: Direction in Arlington is often established by major destinations, like urban villages such as Rosslyn, Ballston and East Falls Church. Similarly, signing corridors, such as the Custis Trail, will also help establish direction.
- Neighborhoods and Local Destinations: Smaller signs, sorted by direction (straight, right or left) and by distance (near to far), will act like "breadcrumbs" and be placed at junctions where a decision must be made about which direction to take.
- Strategic Signage: To minimize sign clutter and maintenance costs, only the most popular or useful destinations have been chosen as to not "over-sign" or contribute to sign clutter.
