# Q: German Traffic Signage **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 31, 2011, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/q-german-traffic-signage/594791 "2011-08-31T22:01:02Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 4\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2011, 7:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/q-german-traffic-signage/594791/21 "2011-09-05T07:15:31Z")
> [@constanze](#): > > But in the last decades, even those leftovers would’ve been equipped with those things called traffic lights. (I know that USians think Europe is technologically underdeveloped, but this is not quite true). No, we don’t all think this and you ought to get a more accurate idea of what we typically do think, before making these blanket generalizations. > [@](#): > > Hand signals MAY be used IN ADDITION to body position, to further clarify things. So if a foreign drivers sits there like a stunned rabbit holding up traffic, the cop might make a “come hither/ move” gesture. But hand signals DON’T contradict position - if position says “Stop”, the cop won’t signal “Go” with his hands. I think there’s something missed in translation here; when an American cop directs traffic–and I don’t even know how common that is anymore–the “hand signals” are really more like hand-and-arm signals. Usually white gloves are worn making the officer’s hands more prominent. > [@](#): > > If German traffic cops want to do interpretative dance, they are free to do so in their spare time. On the job, it’s important to communicate clearly. Whoever said this didn’t mean actual dancing. > [@](#): > > As for Germans driving in the US, they probably would ignore hand signals. However, with armed road rage drivers on one hand and lawless cops on the other, confusing hand signals from traffic cops are probably one of the lesser worries for Germans driving in the US. Nice. You never miss a shot, do you? ---
**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2011, 2:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/q-german-traffic-signage/594791/22 "2011-09-06T02:17:08Z")
> [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](#): > > Whoever said this didn’t mean actual dancing. Oops, I stand corrected. My apologies. ---
**Author:** ![Remember\_me](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/82dd89/32.png) [@Remember\_me](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Remember_me)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2011, 6:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/q-german-traffic-signage/594791/23 "2011-09-06T06:59:21Z")
> [@suranyi](#): > > Red + yellow exists all over Europe, but it does not exist in the US or Canada. They don’t have the red+yellow phase in france either. ---
**Author:** ![JoseB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/joseb/32/1530_2.png) [@JoseB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JoseB)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2011, 7:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/q-german-traffic-signage/594791/24 "2011-09-06T07:15:26Z")
> [@suranyi](#): > > Red + yellow exists all over Europe, but it does not exist in the US or Canada. Spaniard living in the Netherlands here. Neither Spain, nor the Netherlands, have the “red+yellow phase” Ah, poor Spaniards, French and Dutch… All of our traffic lights are abnormal! 😛 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/q-german-traffic-signage/594791.md?page=1)