Feds Say Tap The Brakes On Punny Highway Signs

The government say such messages could “adversely affect respect for the sign.”

Ohio highway traffic sign that says, “Jingle Bells, Speeding Kills, Buckle Up Today.”

Anthony Alaniz

By: Anthony Alaniz

Jan 11, 2024 at 3:30pm ET

Add Motor1.com as a preferred source in Google

Comment

The punny messages states have been putting on their highway signs won’t be as fun from now on. The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) announced new guidance last month on how states should use those electronic message boards to convey important information to drivers, and it does not include pop-culture references or jokes.

According to the FHWA, highway messages should be “simple, direct, brief, legible, and clear” to drivers. The new rule recommends that states not display messages with “obscure or secondary meanings, such as those with popular culture references, unconventional sign legend syntax, or that are intended to be humorous” on traffic control devices. Such playful language might be “misunderstood or understood only by a limited segment of road users” and could “adversely affect respect for the sign.”

It’s a sad end to some highway playfulness, but the new rules don’t come as a surprise. The Feds told New Jersey near the end of 2022 to cut it with cute and creative messages, which was one of the first indications that the US government might implement new rules about highway traffic signs.

New Jersey ran some baller messages like: “We’ll be blunt – don’t drive high,” “Get your head out of your apps,” and “Hocus pocus, drive with focus.” But the state also had to tell its drivers to stop taking pictures of its creative signs, saying in a tweet through the New Jersey Department of Transportation that snapping pics is “very dangerous and defeats the message we’re trying to drive home.”

New Rules:

Feds Want Automakers To Install Anti-Speeding Devices In Cars

NHTSA Wants Your Opinions On Its Proposed Anti-Drunk Driving Tech

What do you think?

View

Comments

Utah, Delaware, Ohio, Tennessee, and other states have also transmitted fun and creative messages on their highway signs.

If you want to learn more about how the government controls the roads, check out the 1,100-page Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices for Streets and Highways 11th Edition, published last month. The new rules for the electronic control boards are on page 519.

Sources: Manual On Uniform Traffic Control Devices For Streets and Highways 11th Edition via The Wall Street Journal, Ohio DOT / Twitter

We want your opinion!

What would you like to see on Motor1.com?

Take our 3 minute survey.

- The Motor1.com Team

Share this Story

GO TO COMMENTS

(

)

Got a tip for us? Email: tips@motor1.com

View all comments ( )

Popular

12 Cars With Names That Make Absolutely No Sense

BMW Kept This Hatchback A Secret For Decades

Bugatti Restores One-Off Veyron With A Mirror-Like Aluminum Body

The Gas BMW M3 Isn't Dead: Next-Gen Prototype Roars