MUTCD Monday - Public Works Special
(Tumblr - 2024/12/16)
MUTCD Monday - Public Works Special
(Tumblr - 2024/12/16)
MUTCD Monday is an unscheduled weekly post where I review a (usually) nonstandard road sign that I'm (usually) criticizing.
The Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices, or MUTCD, "defines the standards used by road managers nationwide to install and maintain traffic control devices [road signs and stuff] on all streets, highways, pedestrian and bicycle facilities, and site roadways open to public travel".[1]
This week, I review a sign I saw at the antique mall.
EW, WHAT THE HELL IS THAT? This is awful. Surely produced by the Public Works Department in haste, combined with drug-induced panic, this sign finds an impressive number of ways to be awful.
Why is it GREEN ? It's a NO PARKING sign! It should be RED !
Why is the R smaller than every other letter?
What in God's name is that seven? Why did they use reflective scraps to make it?
I've never heard of Saint Maint. I think it's trying to say "street maintenance".
You aren't supposed to use periods in abbreviations.
When is "After 7AM"? It's always after 7 AM! When can I start parking there again?
What the fuck is the use case for this sign? Where would there be street maintenance every day that requires there to be no cars on the street after 7 AM?
The lack of a border is frankly the least of this sign's worries.
Everyone involved in making this sign or letting it be up for more than a millisecond should be ashamed of themselves. Better designs would be like [these]:
Simple, standard, easily understandable. You don't need to define why parking isn't allowed. If you really need to, you could probably write "STREET CLEANING" on there somewhere. Also, a clearly defined time frame on when you can't park. What a concept! Things could be so much better if people took five seconds to think about what the correct thing to do would be, rather than cooking up one of the worst signs I've ever seen.
Thank you for coming to my autism talk!
#mutcd #mutcd monday #road signs #autism #small rant #fhwa #antique mall #ohio valley antique mall
↓ (2025/01/10 - A few weeks later) ↓
UPDATE: I bought it.