Dimensioned, fabrication-ready drawing of an HOV traffic sign designed in OpenRoads SignCAD.

OpenRoads SignCAD

Transportation sign design software with built-in compliance

BENEFITS

Compliant design for traffic engineers & sign makers

Design standards-compliant road, highway, and traffic signs with less manual work

  • Purpose-built for traffic sign design

    Automatically handle spacing, fonts, borders, and dimensions so designers produce compliant roadway signs with less manual effort.

  • Automatically enforces MUTCD and state standards

    Built in federal and state standards ensure every sign layout is compliant, reducing review cycles and rework.

  • Connect sign design to roadway projects

    Integrates with OpenRoads and MicroStation so signage stays connected to roadway geometry and construction plans.

PRICING OPTIONS

Exclusive pricing options

OpenRoads SignCAD

Purpose-built compliant traffic sign design

  • Purpose-built for North American DOT and MUTCD-compliant sign design
  • Automatically enforces federal and state standards as you design
  • Support for export formats for interoperability with other design tools
  • Integration with OpenRoads and MicroStation
  • The ability to quickly revise existing signs without starting from scratch saves hours of design time
  • Consistent dimensions and preserved alignments during modifications ensures high-quality output

More details

Traffic sign design   

  • Built-in standards support 
  • Automated traffic sign layout with dynamic paneling and dimensioning 
  • Smart objects and object modification tools (rotate, scale, mirror) for various elements and element grouping 
  • Built-in text editor for sign lettering and layout adjustments

Standards compliance  

  • Built-in state and federal standards 
  • Manual of uniform traffic control devices (MUTCD)

Sign manufacturing output 

  • Export to CMYK EPS and use 3M and Avery traffic colors for digital printing  
  • Export formats  
    • DGN (MicroStation design files) 
    • CMYK EPS 
    • PLT  
    • SVG 
    • PDF 

Interoperability  

  • Integration with OpenRoads Designer and MicroStation 
  • Open and manage files from ProjectWise  
  • Import formats  
    • DGN (MicroStation design files)  
    • CEL  
    • SVG Graphics  
    • BMP Image files  
    • Native format – .sgn SignCAD's native file format  

Processor:

  • Intel® or AMD® processor 1.0 GHz or greater.

Operating System:

  • Windows 10 (64-bit) & Windows 11 (64-bit) - Home, Pro, Enterprise, and Education
  • Bentley does not support its software running on Microsoft operating systems versions that Microsoft has "retired". For more information see Microsoft's application retirement policy, click Here and the Bentley Application Support Lifecycle, click Here.

Memory:

  • 8 GB minimum.

Disk Space:

  • 5 GB free disk space (which includes the 2.6 GB install footprint for a complete installation)

Display:

  • 1600 x 1200 or higher

Video:

  • 1 GB Video RAM recommended.

 

FAQS

Find answers

No. OpenRoads SignCAD works as a standalone application, so you don't need OpenRoads or MicroStation to get started. However, if you do use either platform, OpenRoads SignCAD integrates seamlessly with both, making it a flexible choice whether you're working independently or within a larger design environment.

No. Although it supports some standards outside of North America, it does not currently meet many local specifications.

Yes. You can import DGN, CEL, SVG and BMP files.

Traffic sign design software is a specialized type of application used to create, customize, and produce traffic and road signs. Here's an overview of what it typically does:  

  • Design signs that comply with official standards such as MUTCD in the US.  
  • Arrange standard symbols, arrows, text, and borders according to regulatory specifications. 
  • Generate output files suitable for sign fabrication.  

SignCAD ensures compliance in several ways: 

  • The MUTCD is embedded as electronic standards to design traffic signs automatically. This enforces compliance during the design process rather than checking it after. 
  • SignCAD lets you design, define, and dimension all sign elements while automatically maintaining compliant alignments and spacing as you edit.  
  • Bentley coordinates with state DOTs to update regional templates, fonts, shields, and borders, ensuring both federal and state-level compliance. 
  • Template-based workflows and pre-encoded dimensions, colors, and layouts help engineers and planners design compliant signs faster. 
  • SignCAD 2025 supports the latest MUTCD updates with expanded file compatibility, including SVG and PDF import and export. 

OpenRoads SignCAD is a professional traffic sign design and manufacturing software made by Bentley Systems.  
 
It is a standards-based sign design tool that includes standards for U.S. Federal, U.S. States, and Canadian Provinces, with a built-in database of federal and state standards. 
 
Users can access a library of design objects including route markers, arrows, symbols, panels, borders, lines, and fonts, eliminating the need to start from scratch. Dynamic paneling and automatic dimensioning capabilities adjust dimensions and maintain alignments for quick updates.

RESOURCES

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