mile marker vs milestone

mile marker

noun
  • A numbered milepost or sign along a highway, or some other road, used to determine the location of a motor vehicle. 

milestone

noun
  • A stone milepost (or by extension in other materials), one of a series of numbered markers placed along a road at regular intervals, typically at the side of the road or in a median. 

  • An important event in a person's life or career, in the history of a nation, in the life of some project, etc. 

verb
  • To plan out a project as a series of major steps. 

  • To place milestones along (a road, etc.). 

How often have the words mile marker and milestone occurred in a corpus of books? (source: Google Ngram Viewer )