# Stupid highway signs **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [May 6, 2020, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-highway-signs/853287 "2020-05-06T18:35:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![slash2k](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/439d5e/32.png) [@slash2k](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slash2k)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2020, 3:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-highway-signs/853287/41 "2020-05-07T03:50:02Z")
> [@Shoeless](#): > > Except that I’m talking about interstate-like state highways, not two lane highways out in the boonies. Nobody in their right mind is going to drive 25 mph on a four lane, limited access freeway. Yes, I know. When you pass that sign, though, you’ve just passed a city limit, whether for a podunk town or a built-up suburb. Every stretch of road in that city has a speed limit, but they’ve only marked the roads that are NOT 25mph. The highway is one such road; if you get off at an exit in that town, the road you turn onto may or may not have speed limit signs, and if it doesn’t, you are expected to know it is 25mph. ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2020, 3:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-highway-signs/853287/42 "2020-05-07T03:58:43Z")
Minnesota just put up flashing yellow left turn arrows and signs saying “Left turn yield on flashing arrow” because it doesn’t occur to some Minnesota drivers that they shouldn’t drive directly into oncoming traffic. ---
**Author:** ![sishoch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3e96dc/32.png) [@sishoch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sishoch)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2020, 5:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-highway-signs/853287/43 "2020-05-07T05:30:42Z")
Safety corridor Please drive safely So when I leave the safety corridor, do I have permission to drive recklessly? ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2020, 7:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-highway-signs/853287/44 "2020-05-07T07:32:56Z")
So who has right-of-way on the highway – the airplane or the cruise ship? ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2020, 7:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-highway-signs/853287/45 "2020-05-07T07:35:55Z")
> [@Ethilrist](#): > > Minnesota just put up flashing yellow left turn arrows and signs saying “Left turn yield on flashing arrow” because it doesn’t occur to some Minnesota drivers that they shouldn’t drive directly into oncoming traffic. What the driver needs to know is that on-coming traffic is not stopped. Those flashing left-turn arrows are a relatively new-ish convention in America, and not very widespread that I know of. I wouldn’t bet that they are widely known by a lot of American drivers. I don’t know of them anywhere in California, but I see them in Nevada. ---
**Author:** ![aruvqan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aruvqan/32/2891_2.png) [@aruvqan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aruvqan)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2020, 9:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-highway-signs/853287/46 "2020-05-07T09:02:46Z")
> [@vow](#): > > and here i thought it meant that the cows had to ride bicycles. Oh, wait, bicycles are not permitted on freeways. Get out the harley, elsie! > > (that sounds suspiciously like a far side cartoon…) > ~vow rotflmao ---
**Author:** ![PatrickLondon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/patricklondon/32/4422_2.png) [@PatrickLondon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PatrickLondon)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2020, 10:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-highway-signs/853287/47 "2020-05-07T10:46:32Z")
Signs in the UK are standardised to a common logic, mostly graphical rather than verbal, so they shouldn’t in theory be ambiguous (and you’re tested on them to get a licence), but [this one (warning of road works ahead)](https://www.cusack.co.uk/imagecache/bdd12174-2adb-4fe5-b849-a09a00c3d5a6_900x900.jpg)I’ve heard described as “man shaking umbrella”. But there’s [one temporary warning sign](https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/cats-eyes-removed-sign-somerset-england-287278019) that a local council felt they had to re-design ---
**Author:** ![harmonicamoon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/65b543/32.png) [@harmonicamoon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/harmonicamoon)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2020, 12:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-highway-signs/853287/48 "2020-05-07T12:06:38Z")
Leaving Reno and heading East there is a sign that reads “No services next 24 miles”. But, in ten miles there is a well known house of ill repute. It is legal there. So, that ain’t a service? ---
**Author:** ![Folacin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/folacin/32/3195_2.png) [@Folacin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Folacin)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2020, 12:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-highway-signs/853287/49 "2020-05-07T12:49:57Z")
> [@Ethilrist](#): > > Minnesota just put up flashing yellow left turn arrows and signs saying “Left turn yield on flashing arrow” because it doesn’t occur to some Minnesota drivers that they shouldn’t drive directly into oncoming traffic. We have those here. They are informing you that you are allowed to turn on the flashing yellow. This is good information, since yellow normally means the light is about to turn red (so go fast!). ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2020, 12:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-highway-signs/853287/50 "2020-05-07T12:53:21Z")
> [@gotpasswords](#): > > I own a big orange sign that reads “WATER ON ROAD DURING RAIN” > > I wish I knew what led to its creation, and by what agency. Orange is normally for road work, so maybe some drains were temporarily blocked to keep construction debris out? There s a road that leads to a boat ramp for Crooked Creek Lake with a sign that says, “ROAD ENDS IN WATER”. ---
**Author:** ![mcgato](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ac8455/32.png) [@mcgato](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mcgato)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2020, 1:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-highway-signs/853287/51 "2020-05-07T13:06:59Z")
When I lived in North Carolina, we always made fun of the signs that said “Bridge Freezes Before Road.” Then one chilly Sunday morning, my girlfriend was driving us somewhere. Near the end of a bridge, we obviously hit an icy patch. The car slid for a bit until the bridge ended, then the ice disappeared. The girlfriend commented “hey, the bridge does freeze before the road.” ---
**Author:** ![The\_Stainless\_Steel\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_stainless_steel_rat/32/5727_2.png) [@The\_Stainless\_Steel\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Stainless_Steel_Rat)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2020, 1:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-highway-signs/853287/52 "2020-05-07T13:07:25Z")
I remember in my travels (but I am sorry that I don’t remember which state(s), as you approached the work site you had the usual signs showing the reduced speed, but then one with a large hand pointing at you and saying **YOU** Slow Down. Rather personal in it’s way. And Jackmannii, we also have the religious billboards with the same message (and an 800- number) here in Alabama/Tennessee along I-65. ---
**Author:** ![Filbert](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/filbert/32/3433_2.png) [@Filbert](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Filbert)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2020, 1:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-highway-signs/853287/53 "2020-05-07T13:09:26Z")
> [@PatrickLondon](#): > > Signs in the UK are standardised to a common logic, mostly graphical rather than verbal, so they shouldn’t in theory be ambiguous (and you’re tested on them to get a licence), but [this one (warning of road works ahead)](https://www.cusack.co.uk/imagecache/bdd12174-2adb-4fe5-b849-a09a00c3d5a6_900x900.jpg)I’ve heard described as “man shaking umbrella”. > > But there’s [one temporary warning sign](https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/cats-eyes-removed-sign-somerset-england-287278019) that a local council felt they had to re-design I did find a sign a little while back by some roadworks which said, and I quote: ‘Cyclist dismout please find alternative route’. I have a photo to prove it. ---
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2020, 2:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-highway-signs/853287/54 "2020-05-07T14:30:51Z")
> [@slash2k](#): > > Yes, I know. When you pass that sign, though, you’ve just passed a city limit, whether for a podunk town or a built-up suburb. Every stretch of road in that city has a speed limit, but they’ve only marked the roads that are NOT 25mph. The highway is one such road; if you get off at an exit in that town, the road you turn onto may or may not have speed limit signs, and if it doesn’t, you are expected to know it is 25mph. If that’s the case then it’s not at all clear. I wouldn’t expect speed limit signs that I see \*on the highway \* to apply to streets _other than the highway_. Next time I’m driving thru Missouri and I see one of these, I’ll take note whether there is also a “city limit” sign posted nearby. I’ve never noticed that before but that may indeed be the case. In which case, hey I learned something new today! ETA: it might make more sense to have the “except where posted” sign posted with the city limit sign, rather than under the highway’s speed limit sign. ---
**Author:** ![Catamount](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/catamount/32/2840_2.png) [@Catamount](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Catamount)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2020, 3:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-highway-signs/853287/55 "2020-05-07T15:20:58Z")
> [@Beckdawrek](#): > > Down a particularly lonely state highway you cross the \*\*Caney Creek \*\* on a very large, long and over kill bridge. The **Caney Creek** is mostly a dry creek from what I can tell. About 5mi down the highway you cross a not nearly as large/long bridge over the **Caney Creek Relief**. Which is invariably out of it banks. I know I’m **relieved** to be over it without drowning. > ETA: isn’t there a Caney Creek in every jurisdiction? I don’t know, but there’s a Cane Creek near my house. My favorite road sign is one I saw in East Spencer, NC several years ago: FIRE STATION LEFT. Keep a fire extinguisher handy, you’re on your own! ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2020, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-highway-signs/853287/56 "2020-05-07T15:25:27Z")
In the UK, we get a lot of ‘flood’ warning signs - they are usually intended to be temporary signs (like [this](https://www.metoffice.gov.uk/binaries/content/gallery/metofficegovuk/hero-images/weather/flooding/kayak-on-a-flooded-road.jpg)) - to be placed when there is a temporary flood condition. But I am seeing more and more post-mounted versions of these signs, in places where the drainage could quite easily be fixed - so the sign is tending toward meaning “We didn’t have the budget or inclination to fix the reason this road keeps flooding” ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2020, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-highway-signs/853287/57 "2020-05-07T15:46:08Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > In the UK, we get a lot of ‘flood’ warning signs - they are usually intended to be temporary signs (like [this](https://www.metoffice.gov.uk/binaries/content/gallery/metofficegovuk/hero-images/weather/flooding/kayak-on-a-flooded-road.jpg)) - to be placed when there is a temporary flood condition. > But I am seeing more and more post-mounted versions of these signs, in places where the drainage could quite easily be fixed - so the sign is tending toward meaning “We didn’t have the budget or inclination to fix the reason this road keeps flooding” In the US I have seen “Bump Ahead” signs. I always wonder why they don’t just take the money they spent on the sign and apply it toward fixing the road. ---
**Author:** ![Sicks\_Ate](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/258eb7/32.png) [@Sicks\_Ate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sicks_Ate)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2020, 3:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-highway-signs/853287/58 "2020-05-07T15:55:51Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > In the US I have seen “Bump Ahead” signs. I always wonder why they don’t just take the money they spent on the sign and apply it toward fixing the road. In my last neighborhood there were signs that said “Speed Hump Ahead.” So when my wife and I would be out walking or running, if I saw one I’d yell “SPEED HUUUUUMMMMPP!!” and hump her leg like a methed-up schnauzer. She mostly didn’t think it was funny. ---
**Author:** ![MikeF](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@MikeF](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MikeF)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2020, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-highway-signs/853287/59 "2020-05-07T16:52:22Z")
In southern New Jersey there is a motorsports park called… New Jersey Motorsports Park. Racing of all kinds. More than 20 miles away on a different highway than where the track is located , is a large sign the says “New Jersey Motor Sports Park”. That’s it. No arrow, no “20 miles until NJMP”, not the name of the town. Nothing. If I didn’t know better, I’d think the track was right there at the sign. NJ also has little signs that say either New Turnpike or Garden State Parkway with an arrow pointing in the general direction of an exit w/o a “mileage to” number. No matter that the exit may be 40 miles and several turns away or maybe is an on-ramp for only one direction (not uncommon). “Its Thataway” seems to be enough. ---
**Author:** ![Quondam\_Mechanic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quondam_mechanic/32/3404_2.png) [@Quondam\_Mechanic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quondam_Mechanic)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2020, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-highway-signs/853287/60 "2020-05-07T17:16:00Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > In the US I have seen “Bump Ahead” signs. I always wonder why they don’t just take the money they spent on the sign and apply it toward fixing the road. When I’ve seen 'em they warn about a bump that is the temporary result of some road work being done. OTOH, there are often far worse bumps in the vicinity without signs. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-highway-signs/853287.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-highway-signs/853287.md?page=4)