The ignitor you can check using an (old) AM radio.
When the ballast with ignitor is powered without a lamp, the ignitor makes a lot of RF mess that could be picked up by the radio (mainly at the bottom end of the AM band). Prezence of a buzz signalizes the ignitor is trying to do something, but it still could have some HV insulation problem.

After you manage to pick up the resulting buzz, try to connect a piece of wire (0.5..1m spread across the desk; be careful to have its lose end well insulated) to the lamp live terminal. If the buzz becomes way stronger in the radio, it means the ignitor is generating the high voltage, so very likely is OK.

I also wouln't be surprized the lamp did not survive the transport after being used for some time (spot welds connecting the arctube tend to weaken over time and then crack way easier when the lamp is moved around). To test it you may also use one of the ijstant stsrt fluorescent ballasts. Normally these are able to ignite quite fatty discharge in HPS, so good to test the lamp integrity. Of course, you should not run it for longer than a few second, such low power is not able to warm up the electrodes so the HPSwill suffer on it, but for a brief check of the lamp it is good.

 Last time I was thru that tunnel , the sad looking lighting was the MV system ! Back then I lived near Westport CT .

Funny you mention this tunnel, Tim!  I traversed through this very sad-looking SOX installation just last June.

My parents go through this area year and have for many years now, so I'll ask them. 

 @ Burrito : The Mission Bells are made by GE entirely from GE M-250 & M-400 parts . There's two on eBay : https://www.ebay.com/itm/353203073331 (M-250 parts , 100w HPS) and this : https://www.ebay.com/itm/165525545458 (M-400 parts , unknown wattage/lightsource)

 I don't know the status but I read that's there's been discussion of renovating the tunnel for a few years now.  I wish I could find photos of the original MV lighting ! It was nothing like I've ever seen before !

Looking at white SON running up is kinda fascinating. They sure start and stay for quite long in SOX monochromatic yellow, then gradually turn SON orange, and suddenly get that strange 'brownish' color. Brown is of course a wrong term for radiated light) but I like to call it that way...

Also all Philips SDW lamps flicker for unusually long time when started. I attribute that to simple rod electrode construction, without extra starting aid coils typical for almost all other HID lamps. So it takes a long time to heat the massive rods and do glow-to-arc transition. Wonder if heavy sputtering occurs at that time.


 

Something like this is invaluable for checking to see if the arc tube in a lamp is still good. 

I believe I have a fluorescent lighted sign in my grandmothers basement.

They were still there as of August 2023!

Don’t forget the Wide-Lite 4000.