Are Traffic Signs Dangerous?
A Duke University professor said Tuesday that U.S. highway fatalities are high because speed limits and stop signs have dumbed down and distracted American drivers.
“Driving in America is annoying. And traffic signals are not just annoying, they are dangerous,” said John Staddon, who holds a doctorate in experimental psychology and is past editor of the journals Behavioural Process and Behavior & Philosophy.
The professor maintains that the signs divert the driver’s attention from the road, because the signs are placed off the road.
He criticized the number of stop signs in the United States — essentially at every intersection.
“And more important, they require a stop even when stopping is not necessary for safety’s sake,” Staddon said.
And worse, he added, American neighborhoods use four-way stops to slow traffic, “which is not a good use for them.”
When asked if he thought there would be a movement in the United States to remove stop and speed limit signs, he replied: “I hope so. They are dangerous.”
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Well, yeah overkill. But I think the real point is that there may be too many signs with not enough useful information.
Do I really need to be told that the construction zone has ended? Or put on notice that sheer rock face may occasionally shed a boulder? Does that expensive lighted freeway sign really have nothing more useful to say than “click it or ticket”?
Personally I would like to see fewer products from The Bloody Obvious Sign Shoppe and more navigational aids.
If the guy is really worried about distractions along the roadway he needs to start with billboards, Burma Shave signs and that pesky scenery.
That just shows that a person with a doctorate may be book smart but not have any common sense. To have no signs is idiotic. No railroad signs, no turn ahead signs, no reduce speed ahead signs. I guess someone in an unfamiliar area will find the dangerous area themselves right before they find themselves in the hospital.
Interesting article
This is interesting, but you can’t not have any signs. I wish this guy would have suggested what would be a good alternative. Paint the speed limit on the roadway? I don’t see stop signs moving anywhere different. Though i have found that if I’m in an area i don’t know very well I may actually miss the sign and run it. I have done some pizza delivery driving in the new area that i live in and have noticed that most of this area has done away with stop signs and instead have used yield signs. Which I like and they seem to be working fine. More areas should use yields instead of stops.