Gov. Cuomo has finally pushed his penchant for government branding over the line.
New York’s chief lawmaker didn’t let a little thing like federal regulations keep him from color-coordinating the lane dividers inside two East River tunnels with the pricey blue and gold vanity tiles he ordered for the walls, The Post has learned.
About 3,500 orange pylons affixed to the center of the roadways inside the Brooklyn-Battery and Queens-Midtown tunnels were replaced as part of a $588 million reconstruction project to fix flood-related damage from 2012’s Hurricane Sandy.
The new, plastic poles are blue with bands of reflective gold tape, to match the state’s official colors — and the colored tiles that Cuomo used to decorate the tunnels’ walls and ceiling, which sources have said added $20 million to $30 million to the total cost.
But unfortunately for the Empire State’s color-conscious governor, the azure uprights — which cost the MTA $253,000 — clash with the Federal Highway Administration’s standards.
According to the FHWA manual, “tubular markers” must be either completely or “predominantly” orange, or “the same color as the pavement marking that they supplement” — which in the tunnels are double white lines.
An FHWA spokesman said the blue posts don’t comply with its rules “because they are not the right color,” adding that “there may be other issues,” based on photos shot by The Post.
Spokesman Doug Hecox said his agency “will look into this issue” with the city Department of Transportation, and thanked The Post “for bringing this to our attention.”
Cuomo previously ran afoul of the FWHA over hundreds of tourism-promoting road signs that the feds deemed too distracting to motorists.
The state agreed to replace the signs earlier this year when the FWHA threatened to cancel $14 million in government funding.
Cuomo’s obsession with color is made clear in a 91-page “Brand Guidelines” manual, issued in 2015, that outlines the various shades of blue and gold which can be used to convey the state’s “personality traits,” including “inspiring,” “authentic” and “dynamic.”
MTA spokesman Jon Weinstein insisted the blue pylons “are in full compliance with federal guidelines” because they’re “lane delineators” and not “channelizing devices.”
“We’ve communicated this to the FHWA and will be glad to answer any questions they may have,” he added.


