Those strange messages seen on electronic street signs? Sorry, they are banned.
In a new manual published in December 2023, the US Federal Highway Administration said states must stop using sign messages with “obscure meanings, references to popular culture, intended to be humorous or otherwise use non-standard language.” syntax.”
The agency is concerned that some messages may be misunderstood or distract drivers, and has requested that overhead electronic street signs be “simple, direct, short, legible and clear.”
States have two years to comply with the changes outlined in the 11th edition Manual on uniform devices for traffic management on streets and roadsaccording to the agency.
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Electronic overhead street signs can be used to display information such as warnings about traffic delays, weather conditions, accidents and more, according to the Federal Highway Administration.
Some states are well known for some of their humorous messages, such as Massachusetts, which often has the phrase “Use Yah Blinkah” on its signs. But messages like these will be phased out over the next two years.
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Matt Bruning, press secretary for the Ohio Department of Transportation, said Cincinnati Enquirer that federal authorities are simply asking states “to pay more attention to understanding the signs.”
“But we can do some things with generic messages that thread the needle,” he added.
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This is the first time the MUTCD has been updated in more than a decade, Federal Highway Administrator Shailen Bhatt said in a US Department of Transportation news release. The new manual aims to improve the travel experience as a whole, she added.
“With this long-awaited update to the MUTCD, we are helping our state and local partners make walking, biking and driving safer and embracing new technologies with the potential to make our transportation system safer and more efficient,” US Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said in a statement. .
Categories: Trends
Source: HIS Education