What does the Exit Number plaque mean?
The Exit Number plaque (MUTCD E1-5P, E1-5bP) is a guide sign under the federal Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices, the national standard the states build from. It carries the exit number, mounted on top of the advance guide or exit direction sign.
Source: MUTCD 11th Edition (FHWA), checked 2026-09-09.
What shape and color is the Exit Number plaque?
| MUTCD code | E1-5P, E1-5bP |
|---|---|
| Group | Guide and service signs |
| Shape | Horizontal plaque on top of a larger guide sign |
| Color | Green background, white legend and border |
What a horizontal rectangle means. Usually guidance: direction, distance and destination. Also used for some regulatory plaques mounted under another sign.
What green means. Permitted movements, direction, distance and destination guidance.
Guide and service signs. Direction, services, recreation: three colors doing three jobs, and not one of them carrying a duty. Work out which job the color does and most questions in this group answer themselves.
What is the Exit Number plaque often mistaken for?
Nothing visually, but a plaque mounted on the LEFT of the sign indicates a left-hand exit, which is the detail that catches drivers out.
What are the other guide and service signs?
All 11 guide and service signs on one page, or every US road sign by shape and color.
Test yourself on this sign and the rest of the set with a road signs practice test for Florida, Texas or California.
The artwork is the federal design itself, which the manual dedicates to the public domain in MUTCD 11th Edition, Part 1, Section 1D.06, checked 2026-09-09. The Interstate Shield, the 511 pictograph and the National Scenic Byway graphic are named exceptions and are not reproduced anywhere on this site.
Source: Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices, 11th Edition. Not affiliated with or endorsed by the Federal Highway Administration or any state agency.