[Talk-us] Mass Pike naming convention

[Brian M. Sperlongano]

On Sun, Jul 3, 2022 at 7:25 PM Greg Troxel <gdt at lexort.com> wrote:

>
> I see that the Key:name page says:
>
>   If a signpost abbreviates the name to save space, but the name can
>   reasonably be spelled out in full, the name=* should also be spelled
>   out in full.
>

I appreciate the Mass Ave vs Mass Pike comparison, because it's also the
same one I thought of (and probably true of anyone familiar with the Boston
area).

There is really no question that "Mass Ave" is a local abbreviation for
Massachusetts Avenue, and this fact is reflected on signs.  In [1] the
abbreviation "MASS. AVE" is used (note the period) on a sign very clearly
to save space.  On actual signs along the road, as in [2], the fully
spelled out "MASSACHUSETTS AVE" is used.

[1]
https://www.google.com/maps/@42.3566249,-71.093995,3a,80.7y,59.57h,85.85t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1s4bf78nHPVu5FyH9OCz2rFA!2e0!7i16384!8i8192
[2]
https://www.google.com/maps/@42.3582628,-71.0930844,3a,75y,74.33h,87.96t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1saxrv4HTP05JVbRWphuS0uA!2e0!7i16384!8i8192

However, the Mass Pike is different because it's consistently marketed and
signed as Mass Pike, and not just as a way to save sign space.  For
example, in [3] there is more than ample room on the sign to spell out
"Massachusetts Turnpike" but instead "Mass Pike" is used, with lots of
blank space around it.  In fact, along the entire route of I-90 in
Massachusetts, you will always find it signed "Mass Pike", either in text
as in [3] or with just the pilgrim hat shield, and never anything longer.

[3]
https://www.google.com/maps/@42.1166964,-72.0695449,3a,75y,271.03h,88.55t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sFWnAB5taniUT4_RYerfBKA!2e0!7i13312!8i6656

For those suggesting that "Mass Pike" is an abbreviation equivalent to "St"
or "Ave" or "Rd", it isn't -- "Mass Pike" is a clearly deliberate choice in
branding and signage by MassDOT to create and promote a consumer-friendly
name for regular use by the public.  The only time I have ever seen
"Massachusetts Turnpike" or some partial variant such as "Mass Turnpike" is
in official contexts such as on MassDOT's web site.  Hence my suggestion
that perhaps the fully-spelled out version was an anachronism rather than
the simple expansion of an abbreviation.  Compare this to the Pennsylvania
Turnpike, which can be found fully spelled out [4] on signage, along with
various examples with abbreviated variants of Pennsylvania (including the
unfortunate PENNA).

[4]
https://www.newsweek.com/vehicular-crash-pennsylvania-turnpike-1480470#slideshow/1557629

Regardless of which variant goes where, I do agree that the addition of
"Mass Pike" to one of the _name tag variants is the bare minimum change
that needs to be made to at least reflect this usage.
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