JetBlue's fancy new Queens headquarters is just missing one thing: a massive illuminated sign letting everyone for miles around know about JetBlue. more ›

Did you take advantage of the, uh, "Free" subway rides this morning! Nothing like a semi-legit looking sign to brighten up a straphanger's commute, right? more ›

Former Brooklyn Heights resident Truman Capote once famously said, "I live in Brooklyn. By Choice." The quote is now being used on 78 directional signs in the borough to help tourists navigate Downtown Brooklyn, and some residents are taking it as a slap in the face! According to the NY Post, at least. more ›

Pat Kiernan points us to what he deems a “useless but damn cool” video, put together by photographer Jacob Kedzierski and featuring every street name sign in Manhattan. Or so Kedzierski claims! Check out the 2000 photographs below: more ›

In today's Obvious News, police give out just 400 tickets for horn blowing every year, despite noise being one of the top 311 complaints. And the signs warning of a $350 fee for honking, which cost the city $51 to put up, don't seem to be doing much. Transportation consultant Sam Schwartz told NY1 that not only are the signs "laughable," but that honking doesn't even do anything. "It's not going to change the world in one bit, except increase our blood pressure, the blood pressure of other drivers, the blood pressure of the pedestrians." more ›

As you have most likely heard by now—there's been talk of a new astrological sign, along with the possibility of your sign changing. Last week Susan Miller of AstrologyZone told us, "Nothing changed. Sidereal astrology studies the precession of the equinoxes, and it doesn't work when we sift 23 degrees." We have no idea what that means, but it sounds like if you were a Virgo last month, you are still one now. more ›

According to our super scientific poll, almost 90% of you thought that spending $27.5 million on a street sign font change was pretty stupid. And the federal government might agree! Officials say they're "reviewing" the proposed changes to make sure they supposed improved safety is worth the money. U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood told the Daily News, "Given the difficult economic conditions states currently face, asking for additional input on compliance dates is the right thing to do. We want to be sure these safety requirements are reasonable, fair and cost-effective." more ›

Citizens of the city, the powers that be are going to be spending $27.5MM on changing all of the capital letters on our signs to lower case letters. The change is being made thanks to a federal regulation change in the new Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices, reports the Daily News, who lambasted the idea on their cover today. more ›

A Pennsylvania man wanted to make a point: David Kliss was upset that a mandated sewer tie-in would cost him thousands of dollars. So he put up a sign that read, "$10,000 to Take a Crap." He was ordered to remove the offending word, crap, because he was violating a zoning ordinance that "No Loud, Vulgar, Indecent or Obscene Advertising matter shall be displayed in any manner." He took off the word, but it didn't sit right with him, and he filed a federal lawsuit against what he viewed as a bogus, vague law. more ›

The MTA finally fixed the FML subway signage at 14th Street... except now it's more F'd up than before! Our photographer Katie Sokoler spotted the replacement stickers and tells us: more ›

That was fast. The MTA has already changed their new subway signage (representing the F, M and L lines at 14th Street) so that it doesn't read as an internet meme meaning: "Fuck My Life." So... time to think of a fun meaning for LFM. Anyone? Some ideas bantered around the office include: "Lord, Fuck Me" and "Lick Fabio's Mullet" (this would also make for a great single-serving site a la Selleck Waterfall Sandwich). more ›

Billy Leroy, who was arrested in March for selling potentially illegal subway signs at Billy's Antiques and Props on East Houston Street, was due in court today. However, it seems they weren't interested in the case! Billy told us, "I was in court today for the subway sign fiasco and it has been adjourned till Sept 22. with no appearance necessary. It seems the DA has no time for me and this case will be dismissed and my signs returned. What a giant waste of time and money..." more ›

With so many changes happening in the system, NYC Transit is replacing 3,000 signs and 25,000 maps by a June 28th deadline, the same day trains like the V and W will become extinct. John Montemarano, director of the station signage division, told the NY Times, “We make sure our customers can wake up on June 28 and figure out how the hell to get around.” more ›

The West Village artist behind the subway etiquette signs, Jason Shelowitz (aka jayshells), is being embraced by the masses for his good deed/public art project. He's created around 400 of the posters, all calling out straphanger's on their unsavory underground habits. So far only 50 are up, and the NY Post notes that he used double-sided tape that won't leave a mess once the sign is removed (he is the etiquette artist after all!). more ›

Flushing Assemblywoman Grace Meng is putting together an advisory board to encourage local business owners to display signs in English, not Chinese or Korean, as is common in the neighborhood. Meng says that the foreign signs often scare away potential customers, hurting business for the area. She told the Daily News, "I represent many constituents...who are not comfortable with not being able to fully understand signage outside of stores and inside stores." more ›

A street artist has put up signs all over Brooklyn (have you spotted them elsewhere?) reminding passerby of a few things. We were confronted by this "Life Is Too Short" sign in DUMBO this morning, but it's the "You Are Not Cool" reminder that Miss Heather spotted in Williamsburg that's really perfectly placed. The signs, which mimic official NYC street signs, are the work of TrustoCorp. more ›

All of those station agents removed from the subway system have been replaced by... arrows and intercoms. The NY Post notes that "billboards posted on newly vacated station-agent booths at 86 subway stations display an arrow that's supposed to point to an intercom for riders to use in an emergency." But the arrows are allegedly pointing every which way but right. Gene Russianoff from the Straphangers campaign says, "They replaced a live human being with an Easter egg hunt." If you spot any of the confusing arrows send us your photos! more ›

It was 3:30 a.m. on Thursday when Shavit Mekeiten legally parked his Mitsubishi on East 41st Street near Second Avenue. But six hours later, DOT workers dug out the diplomats-only sign that had been behind Mekeiten's car and moved it fifteen feet—to create an extra spot for the New Zealand Consulate. Voilà! Mekeiten was now parked illegally, and an NYPD tow truck soon arrived to take the car away, despite bystanders' protestations. Doorman Nick Perkaj tells the Post he tried to reason with the tow-truck driver: "I know that car! They just moved the sign! The tow-truck driver just said, 'I don't give a f- - -,' and they towed the car." To get his Mitsubishi back from the Manhattan tow pound, Mekeiten had to pay the $185 tow fee and a $95 ticket for not having diplomatic plates. He tells the Post, "They're heartless. They have no conscience. They treated me like I shot someone. This is really, really unfair. I didn't do anything wrong." Earlier this month some NYPD tow truck drivers anonymously informed the Post that they're expected to meet a quota of four tows per day, and if they fall short they're punished with less overtime, assigned undesirable shifts, or have their time-off requests delayed. more ›

You know who's not on board with the Health Department's plan to make tobacco retailers display graphic anti-smoking posters? The New York Post, that's who. The tabloid is sick of the government telling us what's bad for us all the time, and someone in Murdoch's stable has penned a cranky editorial about it, darkly wondering how far this health-nut meddling go: "What's next? Mandatory autopsy attendance?" There's also a rockin' allusion to The Who's "Won't Get Fooled Again": "Meet the new Tom—same as the old Tom." That's a reference to Tom Farley, Mayor Bloomberg's replacement for ex-city Health Commissioner Tom Frieden, who recently joined the Obama administration. Farley's assistant promises that with this new anti-smoking campaign, "You're going to see what a blackened lung looks like. You're going to see what mouth cancer looks like. You're going to see what it looks like when you have throat cancer." Awesome, right? But to the Post, this is just a blatant power grab: "Mayor Mike and his new health commisar mean to festoon food stores with massive, disgustingly graphic images because they can, not because they should." Basically, it's 1939 all over again! First they came for the smokers... more ›

Famous writer Gay Talese has written a post for CityRoom (he was a former Times reporter, after all) about writing some more timely signs for homeless people. Truly: He replaced one homeless man's sign, which read, "Homeless. Please help," with the words, "Please Support Pres. Obama’s Stimulus Plan, and begin right here … at the bottom … Thank you." Later, when Talese went home, he printed out the plea and created about two dozen signs—"I taped each page onto separate pieces of laundry board (14 by 8 inches) that the dry cleaner sends home with my shirts"—and distributed them to "random to people who approached me for money." Talese plans to monitor their success, but one told him, “I think I made 10 or 20 dollars more yesterday than before. So maybe the sign is already working.’’ more ›

As far as an underground typo is concerned, it's not all that important unless, say, the F train is donning an R. So we hope the folks at NYC Transit don't actually fix the harmless errors—that would cost money, and it's sort of fun to spot these while waiting for the train to arrive. That said, last week a reader noticed an over 70-year-old typo on a Brooklyn G train platform, which was quickly followed with more human spellcheckers sending in their own quirky finds (including this one for "Brighten" Beach). Here are the top typos—send yours to tips(AT)gothamist(DOT)com and we'll add them! more ›

Brooklyn dog owners have been at a loss about where to bring their furry friends in the borough, and some new signs reminding them they're not welcome in Prospect Park have locals in an uproar. The Brooklyn Paper reports that the new signs, which states "Dogs are permitted only on the paths around the ballfields," have locals thinking "park officials are arbitrarily enforcing regulations and unfairly targeting their four-legged friends." If your pup is found outside of the designated perimeters, or without a leash, it's a $100 fine. One park-goer says it's frustrating that the park cops "strictly enforce dog rules, but they turn a blind eye to everything else that takes place in the park” -- and ticketing is expected to go up now that the signs are in place. Meanwhile, those raccoons are just walking around like they own the place. more ›