Thursday, May 23, 2013

Understand Road Sign Shapes







Knowing the shapes of road signs can save your life. Although they appear in the driver's manual, most people memorize them for the written test and promptly forget them. You may want to brush up on them, because they can be extremely important to driving safety.








Instructions


1. Understand the road sign shapes. Shape often indicates a sign's function. For example, the circle is used exclusively for railroad warning signs and the octagon for the stop sign.


2. When you're near tracks, look for the cross buck that indicates a train crossing sign. An equilateral triangle that points down indicates a yield signs and the pennant is for no-passing signs.


3. Learn the other road sign shapes. The pentagon is used for school advance warning signs and county route marker signs. The diamond is for warning signs. A long vertical rectangle indicates regulatory signs. A long horizontal rectangle is for guide signs, some warning signs and temporary traffic control signs. Note that the trapezoid is used for recreational area guide signs and National Forest route markers. There are other shapes that are typically used for route marker signs.


4. Commit the shapes to memory. Teach your children the shapes of the road signs so that they won't have a hard time remembering when they are learning to drive. It will also help you remember the road sign shapes.

Tags: warning signs, road sign, guide signs, marker signs, road sign shapes