If you haven’t seen them, take a look below. While it’s a serious problem, some states are using funny or out-of-the-box messaging to discourage dangerous and distracted driving. Research finds drivers 15-19 years old were involved in the greatest number of distracted driving crashes, but more and more adults are also using technology behind the wheel. In 2014, more than 3,100 people died and 431,000 were injured in motor vehicle crashes involving distracted drivers. Could that be what it seems to be? You look again and yes, it’s an electric road sign with a catchy or humorous message.Īpril is National Distracted Driving Awareness Month.

That means, in their universal quest to make roads safer, state DOTs will keep bringing on the jokes.Īnd as a reminder to everyone who's looking at this on their cellphone while driving: 'Cousin Eddie Says Twitter's Full: Put The Phone Down.You’re driving along, paying attention to the traffic around you when suddenly a sight catches your eyes.

'We need to make it socially unacceptable for people to do things on the roadway that put everybody at risk.' 'If you were to walk into a child care facility today and smoke a cigarette, everybody in that room would look at you with horror,' Biesty reasoned. Another study showed dynamic signs pull the eye in, making drivers pay more attention to what they're saying.īack in Arizona, Kevin Biesty conceded it's hard to know if road signs are preventing crashes, but the bigger point is getting drivers to change their mindsets. That's true even when they have to think hard to get the joke. The Federal Highway Administration has surveyed thousands of people, and more than 80% of them said they understood the messages on highway signs. 'How do we get across to people, at a time when people are inundated with messages, to at least get them thinking and talking about safety?'īut a big question lingers around all of this: Do funny signs about seat belts or distracted driving make a difference in changing behavior, or is it just another distraction for drivers?Įurope Well, That Was Fast: Young German Speeder Earns, Loses License In 49 Minutes 'But the one missing link is the one who controls the whole thing, and that's the person behind the wheel,' he said. Communications Manager Kevin Biesty said comedy and road safety aren't so different: it's all about timing. 'If one kid got a car seat, or one parent decided to put their child in a car seat rather than in the front seat, then we succeeded,' Turner said.Īlso on board the funny messaging trend is the Arizona Department of Transportation, which picked up the idea at an industry conference in 2015. That got lots of love on Twitter, and Chris Turner with Mississippi's Department of Transportation said it's still one of his favorites.

Humorous signs and sayings