My Road Sign

Chairman Fred Hampton Way

I was lucky to see this immediately after my most recent post about an MLK Jr. renaming. While the street is not technically being renamed - its only an honorary designation - the move is stunning. This is where I'd expect to see some outrage about a street renaming. I'd expect representatives and community members to stand up and shout about this. It did raise a stir because the Black Panthers were a controversial group and took militant stands. I expect to see sparks fly for Fred Hampton, but not for MLK Jr.

2nd, Not Stonewall, Renamed Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard

Further evidence that renaming a street after the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. will cause a battle more than any other name. This latest joins the following (I'm sure there are others not chronicled here):
Durham, NC
Quincy, IL
South Bend, IN (no controversy here)
Lynchburg, VA
Louisiana and Ithaca, NY
People objected to renaming Stonewall Street because there was a possibility that the street was named after Stonewall Jackson, whose widow lived in Charlotte. According to the article, however, there is no proof that this was the reason. Perhaps they just protected a street named for a nice stone wall?

On a related note, how does a street become a boulevard? Change the sign! In my mind, a street and a boulevard are very different things. According to Wikipedia it "usually consists of a wide, multi-lane arterial divided thoroughfare" while a street is sometimes a pedestrian street, alley, or a center-city street too crowded for vehicles. The bottom line is that renaming a street boulevard makes is sound more dignified.

Animal Road Signs: Wekas Road Sign

I was compelled to check this out because I had never heard of a Weka. Apparently, that is because I have never been to New Zealand. Wikipedia gives a short description of the Weka, you might call it a Wekapedia.

Where the Streets have no Name

Duiwelskloof is a small town in South Africa where one woman has demanded the government improve the town's infrastructure. She wants tarred roads and street signs. It is something many of us take for granted and assume the government will replace, even when we steal them to put in dorm rooms and to give as gifts, but in some places, people are asking for them as a way to stabilize their community. People deserve to know on what street they live.

Metrification in the UK Still Facing Barriers

Road signs in the UK are still a muddled mess of miles and kilometers. The change to the metric system that was started in the 60's was stopped in 1970 and never completed. While most other nations have made the switch (the US being the obvious exception) the UK continues to argue that it is just too expensive. Many hope that the change will be completed by 2012, but the reality is that it may not.

No Memorial Street Signs for Dead Pigs

Peta has been blocked from erecting a drive safely sign in Virginia because they wanted to do it at a site where 99 pigs were killed by an automobile. The state says that the signs are reserved for humans who have died.

Funny Road Signs at Intersections

Paul Eisentein created an online contest, the Weird and Wacky Street Names Contest, to collect funny road sign names and intersections. Some of those mentioned are:

Street Names
Lois Lane Drive
Leg O'Mutton Road
Chocolate Street (Pleasonton, CA)
Shades of Death Road (Allamuchy, Warren County, NJ)
Dingleberry Road (near Iowa City, IA)
Broomrape Lane (Lake Havasu, AZ)
Chicken Shack Lane
Nixon Bluett Road (Nixon blew it)
Smashed-in Buffalo Head Road (North Dakota)
Psycho Path (Traverse City, MI)
Divorce Court (Heather Highlands, PA)
Farfrompoopen Rd. (Story, AK) - on the site they relay that this is the only way to get to Story, Arkansas 's Constipation Ridge.
Intersections
Bush and Clinton Streets
Young Avenue and Easy Street (Clearwater, FL)
Grinn Drive and Barrett Road (West Chester, OH)
Bangher Avenue and Leever Street (New York, NY)
Lonesome Road and Hardup Road (Albany, GA)
Clinton and Fidelity (Houston, TX)

Street Sign Museum

Ok. Its not really a street sign museum. A town in Pennsylvania donated its old signs to raise money for a local museum.

Jesus Is Lord Street Sign

Another photo posted on Flickr. This one shows the after-effects of Hurricane Katrina on an interesting message.

No Entrance Street Sign Or You'll Smash Your Car

This is a great sign that shows the "impact" of your decision.

Too Many Road Signs?

A new study by the RAC Foundation says that having too many road signs is a danger. The picture in this article is great. I can't imagine how anyone could read that many road signs while driving.

Another article sites the example of "a bilingual traffic sign in Wales which gave pedestrians contradictory instructions in English and in Welsh."

SOTP Sign

I love the posts on Rebuilding Place in the Urban Space and try to read it regularly, but there is rarely something that is so appropriate to share here.

Martin Luther King Jr. Way, Street, Road, Alley

If you've seen any of my previous comments about Martin Luther King, Jr. street signs, you'll know that I have mixed feelings about it. This Lousiana columnist makes the case that memorializing Martin Luther King Jr. on street signs may have little effect on people and is probably not what the man himself would have wanted.

Interestingly, I just found another MLK controversy brewing in Ithaca, NY. My main observation has been that it is absolutely amazing how much controversy this man still creates. There are always strong opponents to a street being renamed for MLK Jr. I certainly won't say race is always the motivation behind the objections, but it seems likely to be the case some of the time. I never read about the arguments made above, but it is possible that some are motivated by a desire to save the money and spend it on better pursuits. After all, aren't signs meant as landmarks to help us find our way around? Does it make sense to replace a street full of signs to honor someone? Are there better ways to spend this money?

Lover's Lane and more in San Francisco

There was a nice little article in the San Francisco Chronicle just in time for Valentine's day that suggested some romantic spots in the city, including Lover's Lane.

Tiger Woods Way

Tiger Woods got his own street sign on Tiger Woods Way. Oh yeah, he also opened a $25 million learning center. I guess that's big too.

Road Signs and Housing Prices

Interesting to see how much a name on a road sign can effect people. Well, its not really the name is it? Housing prices have become such a big thing. I wonder what will happen when the market slows.

If you find an interesting story about a road sign in the news and I haven't posted the story here, email mail@myroadsign.com. I would hate to miss signage current events!

You may also want to check out the stories related specifically to stolen road signs and road sign photos.

Take a look at our archive of road sign and street sign news.

Road Signs that Were in the News

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