Although Hastings has grown steadily since 1990, the number of road signs along Interstate 80 that mark the distance to the city has decreased. The reduction has some Hastings residents up in arms, including City Councilman David Rosenberg. Rosenberg said not getting name recognition on I-80 road signs can hamper community growth and tourism. According to state and local officials, there were as many as seven signs in 1990 giving the distance to Hastings along I-80 west from Lincoln.
Today there are four.
The number of signs along I-80 east from Kearney remains at two. The process of replacing Hastings with Grand Island on the signs is in keeping with federal guidelines, said Randy Peters, Nebraska Department of Roads traffic engineer. The American Association of State Highway and Traffic Officials designates all the control cities for nation's interstate system. I-80, which runs from New York City to San Francisco, Calif., has 31 control cities. This means they have the most mileage signs along the interstate.