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Sign O’The Times

In April 2016, Parliament enacted legislation enabling councils to remove out of date and unnecessary road signs. Nearly 6 years later, and the difference is negligible, but the intention behind it is admirable.

Road signs as we know them today really began in 1963, when the British Government commissioned a review into the signage used on the nation’s roads. The Worboys Report (named after the chair of the committee, ICI’s Sir Walter Worboys) re-defined and standardised the signage in use, replacing the inconsistent, localised, often incoherent and ill-placed text-based warnings, with the clear, pictogram versions that we know today. 

Against a background of an enormous increase in car ownership, the governments of the 50’s and 60’s were tasked with modernising the road network, which, with the exception of the M1 (opened 1959) was still recognisably pre-war. The combination of confusing signs, a young population eager to enjoy the freedom of the road, no drink driving laws, and MOT’s only required for vehicles over 10 years old resulted in perilous roads; road deaths in the UK increased every year from 1950 until their peacetime peak of c8,000 in 1966 (it’s c1700 these days).

Following their succesful implementation of the Anderson Report into Motorway Signage, the design team of Jock Kinneir and Margaret Calvert were employed again, this time to tackle the A and B roads. Their easily identifiable, logical designs went a long way to reduce motorist confusion and frustration, and, in no small part, contributed positively to road safety.

But, that was then. Their ethos of simple, well-placed, less-is-more signage has been lost; and in its place is a mass of illuminated metal, unsightly, expensive, confusing and counter-productive. It is also, with more cars equipped with sat-nav than otherwise, becoming obsolete. 

Recently, on a 14 mile, sat-nav-guided trip to Droitwich, I counted 6 signs pointing me in the town’s direction, which, frankly, seemed rather desperate.

Let’s modernise our approach to signage. We can recycle the metal, save the cost (both financial and environmental) of illuminating them, reduce distraction, and just, you know, tidy the place up a bit.

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