# Those stick figure things on the highway **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [March 9, 2003, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/those-stick-figure-things-on-the-highway/160140 "2003-03-09T21:14:13Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![CBCD](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9fc348/32.png) [@CBCD](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CBCD)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2003, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/those-stick-figure-things-on-the-highway/160140/1 "2003-03-09T21:14:13Z")
Someone here will know the answer to a question that has bugged me for a few years. Along the median strip on highways, the New Jersey Turnpike for one, there are these stick figure things about 4 feet high. They look like the figures some ancient American Indians drew in the desert. I know they are not supposed to represent human figures. What the heck are they? ---
**Author:** ![CBCD](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9fc348/32.png) [@CBCD](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CBCD)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2003, 12:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/those-stick-figure-things-on-the-highway/160140/2 "2003-03-10T00:09:50Z")
Bump ---
**Author:** ![kanicbird](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/5f8ce5/32.png) [@kanicbird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kanicbird)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2003, 12:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/those-stick-figure-things-on-the-highway/160140/3 "2003-03-10T00:34:35Z")
I don’t know either, Any chance you can post a link to it. I doubt it since that link would most likely say what those things were, and how do you search for it. Google needs a pictural search engine where you can scetch whatever and it finds pictures that match. ---
**Author:** ![Q.E.D](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/51bf81/32.png) [@Q.E.D](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.E.D)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2003, 12:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/those-stick-figure-things-on-the-highway/160140/4 "2003-03-10T00:53:19Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by kanicbird \* > \*\*Google needs a pictural search engine where you can scetch whatever and it finds pictures that match. \*\* Now, _that_ would be pretty damn cool. ---
**Author:** ![ChalkPit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a88e4f/32.png) [@ChalkPit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ChalkPit)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2003, 1:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/those-stick-figure-things-on-the-highway/160140/5 "2003-03-10T01:38:39Z")
Can you give more descriptive detail ? ---
**Author:** ![WolfpackJeep](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpackjeep/32/2921_2.png) [@WolfpackJeep](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WolfpackJeep)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2003, 1:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/those-stick-figure-things-on-the-highway/160140/6 "2003-03-10T01:46:46Z")
I’m not quite clear about something…are they drawn on the highway itself, or are they on the barriers? ---
**Author:** ![cookeze](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e19b73/32.png) [@cookeze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cookeze)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2003, 2:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/those-stick-figure-things-on-the-highway/160140/7 "2003-03-10T02:06:30Z")
I thought Google did have a picture search engine. Just go to Google and click on “images.” ---
**Author:** ![ChalkPit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a88e4f/32.png) [@ChalkPit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ChalkPit)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2003, 2:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/those-stick-figure-things-on-the-highway/160140/8 "2003-03-10T02:17:11Z")
Are they at one spot, or all over the place ? Are the figures as in structures (like scarecrows) or drawn ? I take it they look unofficial in nature. I found a lot of info about an American Indian museum near to Exit 15W. That’s about it so far. ---
**Author:** ![WolfpackJeep](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpackjeep/32/2921_2.png) [@WolfpackJeep](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WolfpackJeep)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2003, 2:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/those-stick-figure-things-on-the-highway/160140/9 "2003-03-10T02:19:23Z")
That’s if you are looking for an image with a known name; for instance, if you type in “New Jersey Turnpike,” you could expect to turn up pictures of the turnpike signs, etc. **Kanicbird** was talking about submitting an actual picture/sketch file (like a jpeg) of an unknown object, and having Google return the proper name. (This, of course, doesn’t exist yet.) ---
**Author:** ![Meros](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/8797f3/32.png) [@Meros](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Meros)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2003, 2:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/those-stick-figure-things-on-the-highway/160140/10 "2003-03-10T02:27:25Z")
Where were you on the NJTP. I can try to make a fieldtrip for you if its nearby ---
**Author:** ![CBCD](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9fc348/32.png) [@CBCD](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CBCD)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2003, 11:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/those-stick-figure-things-on-the-highway/160140/11 "2003-03-10T11:55:03Z")
Thank you all for your responses and questions. They are official structures, about 4 feet high. They are on top of the center median strips, and on top of the side barriers. They look to be made of wood strips about 3 inches wide. The last one I noticed was on the median strip on the eastern extension. They are temporary structures. Also, they have nothing to do with American Indian art - they just resemble Indian figures, to me. ---
**Author:** ![Philster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/13edae/32.png) [@Philster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Philster)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2003, 1:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/those-stick-figure-things-on-the-highway/160140/12 "2003-03-10T13:51:28Z")
Well, I recall seeing these. Could they be antenna for relaying police radio signals long distances? Seems to me that given the long distances between trooper stations, and the range of radio frequencies, that to keep the troopers on the same channel/frequency, you need some type of system that extends the range. Like relay points up/down the highway. The NJ Tpike also put signs on the medians/dividers that are for police use only (such as notices that a u-turn is coming up…helpful for troopers to know) I’ll say the structures are antenne/relays towers for police radio. I do see them when on the NJ Tpike. ---
**Author:** ![Nimue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/d26b3c/32.png) [@Nimue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nimue)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2003, 10:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/those-stick-figure-things-on-the-highway/160140/13 "2003-03-10T22:32:16Z")
I’ve always referred to these as “stick figure buddhas” (no offense to anyone!) because they resemble stick figures sitting in the lotus position. You can see a lot of them towards the southern end of the NJ Turnpike. They perch on the concrete divider between the northbound and southbound lanes. I think they are used to hold center signs. ---
**Author:** ![furryman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/furryman/32/99_2.png) [@furryman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/furryman)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2003, 10:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/those-stick-figure-things-on-the-highway/160140/14 "2003-03-10T22:44:39Z")
They’re put there by the Blair Witch. [sub]Get it? “Stick” figures? Never mind…[/sub] ---
**Author:** ![Bravic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ba8739/32.png) [@Bravic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bravic)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2003, 12:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/those-stick-figure-things-on-the-highway/160140/15 "2003-03-11T00:17:20Z")
Um, I still can’t envision what they look like, but could they be markers for snow plows to let them know where the barriers are while plowing three feet of snow?