Saturday, February 28, 2009
Mandatory sign
Mandatory signs are road signs which are used to set the obligations of all traffic which use a specific area of road. Unlike prohibitory or restrictive signs, mandatory signs tell traffic what it must do, rather than must not do. Most mandatory road signs are circular, may use white symbols on a blue background with white border or black symbols on a white blackground with a red border, although the latter is also associated with prohibitory signs.
Freeway
freeway is a type of road designed for safer high-speed operation of motor vehicles through the elimination of at-grade intersections. This is accomplished by preventing access to and from adjacent properties and eliminating all cross traffic through the use of grade separations and interchanges; railroad crossings are also removed. Such highways are usually divided with at least two lanes in each direction. Because traffic never crosses at-grade, there are generally no traffic lights or stop signs. Some countries have roads that function as freeways but use different names. These include autobahn, autovía, autoroute, autopista, autostrada, autosnelweg, motorway (in the UK and Ireland) and expressway (in India and Asia).
The word freeway first surfaced in the mid-1930s in proposals for the improvement of the New York City parkway network. It is currently in regular use in the United States as well as parts of South Africa, Canada, and Australia.
In the United States, the term freeway is frequently used. In some regions of the U.S., other terms are also used, including Interstate, thruway, highway, expressway, and turnpike. While some people use these terms interchangeably, turnpikes and thruways have specific associations with toll roads and other limited access highways, such as the New Jersey Turnpike, Pennsylvania Turnpike, West Virginia Turnpike, Florida's Turnpike, and New York State Thruway; consequently, the term freeway is often used in contrast to refer only to a toll-free road as opposed to its original meaning[4][5] – in which the component "free" implies freedom from traffic interference rather than "at no cost" – still used in other countries and in parts of the U.S.
The word freeway first surfaced in the mid-1930s in proposals for the improvement of the New York City parkway network. It is currently in regular use in the United States as well as parts of South Africa, Canada, and Australia.
In the United States, the term freeway is frequently used. In some regions of the U.S., other terms are also used, including Interstate, thruway, highway, expressway, and turnpike. While some people use these terms interchangeably, turnpikes and thruways have specific associations with toll roads and other limited access highways, such as the New Jersey Turnpike, Pennsylvania Turnpike, West Virginia Turnpike, Florida's Turnpike, and New York State Thruway; consequently, the term freeway is often used in contrast to refer only to a toll-free road as opposed to its original meaning[4][5] – in which the component "free" implies freedom from traffic interference rather than "at no cost" – still used in other countries and in parts of the U.S.
Information sign
An information sign is a very legibly printed and very noticeable placard that informs people of the purpose of an object, or gives them instruction on the use of something. An example is a traffic sign such as a stop sign.
Information signs have been growing in visibility due to the explosion of sign technologies. For hundreds, if not thousands, of years signs were crafted out of wood. Words and images were then hand-painted on the sign. The other traditional way of creating signs dealt with individual constructed letters carved from wood, molded or wrought from metal, which were then individually placed in the appropriate sequence.
While both of these methods are still employed, technology has moved in around them. Woodworking machinery can now be controlled by computers, leading to much greater consistency. Molded signage has changed dramatically with the advent of plastics, which are far more flexible than metal as well as significantly cheaper to produce. Additionally, altogether new sign technologies have come into being, such as computer-cut vinyl signage.
Information signs have been growing in visibility due to the explosion of sign technologies. For hundreds, if not thousands, of years signs were crafted out of wood. Words and images were then hand-painted on the sign. The other traditional way of creating signs dealt with individual constructed letters carved from wood, molded or wrought from metal, which were then individually placed in the appropriate sequence.
While both of these methods are still employed, technology has moved in around them. Woodworking machinery can now be controlled by computers, leading to much greater consistency. Molded signage has changed dramatically with the advent of plastics, which are far more flexible than metal as well as significantly cheaper to produce. Additionally, altogether new sign technologies have come into being, such as computer-cut vinyl signage.
Direction, position, or indication sign
A direction sign, more fully defined as a direction, position, or indication sign by the Vienna Convention on Road Signs and Signals, is any road sign used primarily to give information about the location of either the driver or possible destinations, and are considered a subset of the informative signs group. Direction signs are far more varied internationally than other classes of sign, as the Vienna Convention does not specify sizes, colours, symbols or positions of such signs.
Direction signs are the oldest type of road sign; Plutarch writes about milestones being placed in the 3rd century BC, while some fingerposts in the United Kingdom date back to at least the 1690s. However, it was not until the invention of the motor car at the turn of the 20th century that modern direction signs, with fewer words and clear design, allowing them to be read at speed, evolved.
Direction signs are the oldest type of road sign; Plutarch writes about milestones being placed in the 3rd century BC, while some fingerposts in the United Kingdom date back to at least the 1690s. However, it was not until the invention of the motor car at the turn of the 20th century that modern direction signs, with fewer words and clear design, allowing them to be read at speed, evolved.
Warning sign
A traffic warning sign is a type of traffic sign that indicates a hazard ahead on the road.
In most countries, they usually take the shape of an equilateral triangle with a white background and a thick red border. However, there are color of the background and the color and thickness of the border varies from country to country.
In the People's Republic of China, warning signs appear with a black border and a yellow background. In Sweden, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Greece, Finland, Iceland, the Republic of Macedonia and Poland, they have a red border with an amber background. This is due to the weather, as it is easier to see a red/amber sign in the snowy weather than a red/white sign. The polar bear warning sign in Svalbard recently changed from displaying a black bear on white background to a white bear on black background (both signs are triangular with a red border). Some countries that normally use a white background have adopted an orange or amber background for road work or construction signs.
Warning signs in some countries have a diamond shape in place of the standard triangular shape. In the United States, Canada, Mexico, Thailand, Australia, Japan, Philippines, and Malaysia warning signs are black on a yellow background and usually diamond-shaped, while temporary signs (which are typically construction signs) are black on an orange background. Ireland also adopted these standards, diverging from the standards of the rest of Europe. Some other countries also use these standards for some signage.
In most countries, they usually take the shape of an equilateral triangle with a white background and a thick red border. However, there are color of the background and the color and thickness of the border varies from country to country.
In the People's Republic of China, warning signs appear with a black border and a yellow background. In Sweden, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Greece, Finland, Iceland, the Republic of Macedonia and Poland, they have a red border with an amber background. This is due to the weather, as it is easier to see a red/amber sign in the snowy weather than a red/white sign. The polar bear warning sign in Svalbard recently changed from displaying a black bear on white background to a white bear on black background (both signs are triangular with a red border). Some countries that normally use a white background have adopted an orange or amber background for road work or construction signs.
Warning signs in some countries have a diamond shape in place of the standard triangular shape. In the United States, Canada, Mexico, Thailand, Australia, Japan, Philippines, and Malaysia warning signs are black on a yellow background and usually diamond-shaped, while temporary signs (which are typically construction signs) are black on an orange background. Ireland also adopted these standards, diverging from the standards of the rest of Europe. Some other countries also use these standards for some signage.
Traffic sign
Traffic signs or road signs are signs erected at the side of roads to provide information to road users. With increasing speed of transport, the tendency is for countries to adopt pictorial signs or otherwise simplify and standardize signs, to faciliate international travel where language differences can create barriers and in general to reduce the risks in driving. Such pictorial signs use symbols in place of words and are usually a result of international standards. Such signs were first developed in Europe, and have been adopted by most countries to varying degrees.
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