When it comes to the size, shape, color and messaging of roads signs, they convey a particular meaning that creates a message we absorb and obey consciously or subconsciously. Either way, road sign shapes and colors should not create distracted driving.

Trafficsigns andmeaning

US trafficsigns

On roads across the United States, your vehicle can be legally moving as fast as 75 miles per hour in some locations. Because of that speed, any important information needs to quickly get through the filters that your brain uses to process messages. You simply don't have time to read every sign to find the information you need. For this reason, road authorities rely on familiar road sign shapes and colors to attract your attention.

MUTCD

Every color on non-commercial traffic signs means something. If you're looking for particular information, color coding allows you to focus on the particular meaning of a sign.

Custom traffic signs are used on private property to control traffic flow and parking. One of the most common is the "Handicapped Parking" sign found in virtually every parking lot.

Not only does your brain interpret sign colors, but it also recognizes certain shapes as meaning certain things. Road sign shapes and colors together can a single mean meaning. Virtually every driver or pedestrian would immediately understand a red octagon as a stop sign even with no writing on it.

Let's look at the ways traffic signs convey information to keep drivers, pedestrians and bicyclists safe on our roadways.

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