You Shouldn’t Need HGV Lessons to Understand Road Signage

Driving around many parts of the UK and encountering such a large volume of unnecessary and pointless signs can sometimes give one the impression that you need HGV lessons just to make sense of it all. It should not be this way. And thankfully, with new rules being implemented on 22 April (2016), local councils finally have the authority to do something about the excessive signage. We hope all of them will take advantage of the new rules to clean up the roads.

Fleet News UK reports that the number of road signs in the UK has nearly doubled over the last two decades. In 1993, there were approximately 2.4 million road signs in England as opposed to more than 4.5 million in 2013. Even more have been added over the last three years.

While we agree appropriate signage is necessary to provide vital information to drivers, excessive and pointless signs only become an eyesore and a distraction. We believe it is reasonable to make the case that some instances of excess signage are even confusing to non-local drivers who are not familiar with town roads. For example, a ‘new layout ahead’ sign put in place years ago may confuse an HGV driver new to the area. That driver may be looking for a non-existent new layout and be distracted enough to cause an accident.

What the New Rules Mean

Two important things are accomplished with the implementation of the new rules. First, local councils will have the authority to remove road signs they deem as pointless or now irrelevant. Second, some signs will include enforceable ‘remove by’ dates to ensure they are taken down after they have outlived their usefulness. The previously mentioned ‘new layout ahead’ sign is but one example.

Giving local councils authority to do both makes it possible for them to clean up local roads based on local conditions. This is a good thing. No matter how much we may or may not value nationalised government, it is those people who live locally who best understand how signage affects drivers in their areas. They are the ones that should be making the decision about pointless signs. Local councils who use their new authority wisely should be able to eliminate the ‘need for HGV lessons’ just to understand signs.

We Train HGV Drivers

The pointless sign issue aside, the HGV Training Centre does offer high-quality HGV lessons throughout England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. We are proud to be one of the leading providers of professional driver training in the UK. Since our company was established, we have been committed to helping address the ongoing driver shortage by recruiting and training as many new drivers as we possibly can.

Our HGV lessons will teach you everything you know to take and pass the required tests to get your commercial driving licence. We will even teach you how to recognise and understand road signs.

Sources:

1. Fleet News UK – http://www.fleetnews.co.uk/news/company-car-tax-and-legislation/2016/04/19/councils-get-new-powers-to-remove-unnecessary-road-signs