2009
2
We get to see many road signs, some obscured by the tree, the other hidden behind political posters of film heros, and some simply washed away by rain, thunder, water, pollution etc. If they were visible, this is what some of them (that are necessary) would be saying.
Decided to put this up as there is simply no documentation available on the web of this apart from some signage jokes and some crude scanned versions that have blurry texts. This is Version 1.0, there are more signs that are not included in this post.
The entry restriction signs.
No Entry. Or entry restricted for oncoming traffic only.
One way. Entry restricted for oncoming traffic.
One way. Entry permitted for oncoming traffic only. In other words, no-entry.
These are the top three suspects. The first one says no entry for whatsoever reason, the second and third permit vehicle movement in only one direction at a time. There are advanced versions of these that
The turn restrictions.
No U-Turn allowed.
No Right Turn
No Left Turn
U Turn is allowed. This is normally accompanies by a No Right Turn sign.
These are essentially turn signals. No left turn, no right turn, no U-Turn, and U-Turn allowed normally accompanied by some other restriction like no right turn.
Stop restrictions
No Parking
No Standing. No Stopping.
Then there is No Parking and No stopping- No standing. Parking is when you stop the car, lock it and go away, where as Stopping can be for any reason, like picking up someone, getting down and checking the tyre pressure etc etc.
Speed restrictions, as shown below or variations of the same.
Speed Limit. (In KM per Hour). This one says 80 kmph.
The dimension restrictions.
Vehicle width restrictions. This one specifies 2 meters.
Vehicle Height Restrictions. This one says 3.5 meters
The load restriction signs.
Weight Restriction 5 Tons
Axle weight restriction. 4 Tons. Normally found on old bridges.
The ones above are various types of restrictions. Essentially these are a number printed within a red circle, specifying the restriction amount. The speed limit is denoted always in Km/h (Kilometers per hour) and not mph (miles per hour) in India. The width restriction comes into play on starting of roads that may have a narrow bridge as a bottleneck somewhere. Same goes for the height restriction as well. When traveling on national and state highways, it is best to watch out for these and take evasive action, it may not be possible or feasible to take a U-Turn later.
The weight restriction applies to the whole vehicle weight, whereas the Axle Load restriction applies to load distribution per axle. Really doubt how many of us actually know whats the Axle load while driving a heavy vehicle though, but these are mostly intended for Truckers.
Stop
This one is a universal one. It simply means Stop, for whatever reason maybe. These are mostly found at unmanned or manned railway crossings and intersections.
Give Way
Give way. This is not a very common sight on flat roads, but it essentially means to give passage to oncoming heavy traffic. (Other’s who know more about this may comment on this)
No Overtaking
This is very simple, no overtaking. For whatever reason maybe, do not attempt to pass the vehicle in front of you. Rarely followed though.
No traffic allowed. Also, No Entry from both directions
A very dubious sign which specifies that traffic is not allowed in either direction. Wonder what the purpose of that can be!! A simple no-entry sometimes is more that sufficient than complicating matters. Unless, one is the smart one that thinks of reversing into a no-entry may be legal. Well it’s not.
End of Restrictions (as specified in the earlier sign)
This is the Happy sign. It means, end of all restrictions that were applied in earlier signs. A very very rare sign. But when you do see one, feel free to step on the gas.