Highway Signage
Variable Message Signs
Structures and supports for electronic variable message signs, installed across New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware & Maryland.
Overview
Variable message signs — the electronic overhead or roadside signs that display changing text messages about traffic conditions, incidents, and travel advisories — combine a large-format electronic display with the same structural support challenges as any other overhead or roadside sign structure, plus power, communications, and access requirements the display equipment needs to operate.
From a construction standpoint, our role is the structural and support side of a VMS installation — the foundation, structure, and mounting platform the sign cabinet is installed onto, along with conduit and access provisions coordinated with the systems integrator or agency responsible for the electronic display itself. Getting the structural side right is what allows the display technology to be installed and maintained safely and reliably.
A VMS cabinet adds substantial dead weight and wind-catching surface area compared to a standard sign panel, which changes the structural loading calculation for whatever foundation or structure supports it — a factor our crews and the project's structural engineer account for whether the unit is mounted on a new overhead structure, an existing sign bridge being upgraded to carry a VMS, or a dedicated roadside pedestal. Getting that loading calculation right up front avoids problems later when the electronic equipment vendor's actual cabinet weight and dimensions are finalized.
How & Why It’s Used
Fixed VMS structures are typically installed at key decision points on a highway network — ahead of major interchanges, incident-prone corridors, and locations where travel time or diversion information is most useful to drivers — as part of a state DOT's traffic management program. Portable and trailer-mounted VMS units are used for shorter-term work zone or event traffic control and don't require a permanent structure.
Our crews handle foundation and structural installation for both overhead sign-bridge-mounted VMS units and roadside pedestal-mounted units, coordinating with the DOT or systems integrator on access platform requirements, conduit routing, and any structural provisions the electronic equipment vendor specifies. We also perform structural repair and replacement work on existing VMS supports as part of broader highway signage maintenance contracts.
Adding a VMS unit to an existing sign structure that wasn't originally designed for one is a common scenario as agencies expand their traffic management networks, and it typically requires a structural evaluation of the existing foundation and members before the new cabinet and mounting hardware are installed. Where the existing structure can't safely carry the added load, reinforcement or a new dedicated structure becomes part of the project scope rather than a simple mounting job.
Typical Applications
- —Overhead sign-bridge-mounted VMS structures at major interchanges
- —Roadside pedestal-mounted VMS installations
- —Foundation and structural work coordinated with systems integrators
- —Conduit and access platform provisions for electronic display equipment
- —Structural support for traffic management and incident management programs
- —Repair and replacement of existing VMS structural supports
Frequently Asked Questions
Our role is the structural and support side of a VMS installation — foundation, structure, and mounting — coordinated with the systems integrator or agency responsible for the electronic display and its communications equipment.
They are generally placed at key decision points on a highway network — ahead of major interchanges and along incident-prone corridors — where travel time and diversion information is most useful to drivers before they commit to a route.
Fixed VMS units are mounted on a permanent structure as part of a highway's traffic management infrastructure, while portable or trailer-mounted units are used for shorter-term work zone or event traffic control and don't require permanent structural work.
Sometimes — it depends on whether the existing structure was designed with enough reserve capacity to carry the added weight and wind load of a VMS cabinet, which requires a structural evaluation before the addition is approved.
The display, controller, and communications equipment are typically supplied and maintained by the systems integrator or the owning agency directly — our scope covers the structure, foundation, and access provisions that support the cabinet.
Coordinating electrical service to the site is typically part of the overall project, though the conduit and stub-up work is usually our scope while the utility connection itself is arranged separately by the agency or their electrical contractor.
Yes — portable units are sometimes used temporarily at a location while a permanent structure is designed and installed, giving an agency traffic messaging capability without waiting on the permanent project.
Pedestal-mounted VMS units are typically set back to meet the same clear-zone or barrier-protection requirements as any other roadside fixed object, with the specific setback or shielding determined by the roadway's design speed and available right-of-way.
Get in Touch
Variable Message Signs
Handled.
Tell us about the roadway and the signage work you need.
Call (609) 793-9903 →