Any proposed new street name should be unique in Lower Merion Township, be pleasant sounding, appropriate to the location and easy to read. Personal names are discouraged unless the name has an historical connection with the property being developed or subdivided, or to the Township, or is that of a well known local identity or prominent resident, past or present. Names of 12 or fewer characters are encouraged to maximize visibility of street signs. The following restrictions shall apply:
A. To eliminate potential confusion and delay of emergency response, no street name shall be approved that duplicates or can be confused with the name of an existing street. Any proposed street names or street name changes shall be compared with the street names listed in the Township Plan of Streets to determine if the proposed name would create a duplicate name or be considered confusing.
B. Streets with the same name but different street type designation shall not be permitted (e.g., Avon Road and Avon Street are duplicates).
C. To eliminate confusion resulting from diction problems in reporting emergency situations, names that are similar or have difficult spelling, are obscure or phonetically challenging shall not be approved.
D. Numerical names (1st Street, etc.), alphabet letters (A, C, etc.), complicated names or names with unconventional spelling (use Abbey rather than Abbye), frivolous names or names considered to be in poor taste will not be accepted.
E. Names that include words or syllables that might be confused with prefix or suffix designation (such as Circle Drive) will not be accepted.
F. Names shall not contain hyphens, apostrophes or other nonletter characters.
G. New street names shall not contain more than two words, exclusive of direction or street type.
H. Directional indicators, such as north and west, shall not be included in street name proposals as a prefix or suffix to a street name. When streets cross the east/west or north/south baseline, the appropriate directional indicator may be assigned by the Department of Building and Planning as part of the approval process.
I. Suffix designations. Appropriate street name suffixes may include, but are not limited to the following:
(1) For a highway or major arterial street: highway, road, boulevard, avenue, parkway.
(2) For a primary or secondary road or street: road, drive, lane, way, avenue, street.
(3) For a tertiary or minor street or cul-de-sac: way, court, place, circle, terrace.
(4) For a shopping center ingress/egress: square, center, plaza.