So this

is supposed to be easier to read than this:

And yes, am being totally biased in the making of these signs. I actually find the imposed new style more difficult to read from a car. I blame that in part to tradition: I expect New York City traffic signs to be in all caps. Yet I also blame it on the descenders of the lower case letters: the "tail end" of the G, J and Y become more of a distraction to me on signs. And the assymetric spacing in the rectangle gets all thrown to shit when you mix upper and lower cases.

By the way, this goes to the fontards: I know I should have used Frutiger for the signs. For some bizarre reason my computer doesn't have it.

Anyway, I find this imposed change completely ridiculous.

My kids' teachers asked for paper towels and toilet paper because supposedly the schools couldn't pay for it. One of the schools also wants $125 for each after school class because allegedly budget cuts have gutted the after school program.

Yet the feds have $26 million to throw on small-caping traffic signs because allegedly they are easier to read? From New Yorkers outraged as bureaucrats order city to change lettering on every single street sign:

Street names will change from all capital letters to a combination of upper and lower case on roads across the country thanks to the pricey federal regulation, officials said Wednesday.

[...]

The Federal Highway Administration says the switch will improve safety because drivers identify the words more quickly when they're displayed that way - and can sooner return their eyes to the road.

So what do you think? Is the change worth 26 million dollars?