PITTSBURGH -- The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation is installing colored signs around Pittsburgh to help motorists find their way through emergency detours.

PennDOT said the signs point to detours off interstates or expressways for crashes, natural disasters, hazardous spills or other incidents.

Motorists will be directed off at the nearest exchanges, then will follow the signs to get around the blocked area and back onto the main highway. The signs are based on five colors: black, blue, red, green and orange.

"It did take us some time to develop the system because of the belt system, and we didn't want to confuse people with the different colors, but if you got to some rural areas in Pennsylvania, you'll see that they've had these color coded detours for many years now," said Jim Struzzi of PennDOT.

But what's confusing is that the belt system uses some of the same colors. But the signs are different.

In case of a major disaster, travelers will follow the signs off one interchange and route around the situation to get back on the next available interchange.

The program grew from a February 2007 emergency when snow and ice closed three Central Pennsylvania highways for more than 24 hours, stranding motorists.

Some travelers in the Pittsburgh region said they're confused with the new colored signs. Some said they're skeptical of the idea, saying more signs aren't necessarily a good thing.

"Color-coded or not, it doesn't seem to give you enough information, so it doesn't give you a good feeling at all," said one driver.

PennDOT expects to have all the signs installed by early summer.

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