If your child is walking on the shoulder of the road, do you want cars whizzing by at 45 mph? No, you would rather they glide along at a stately 10 or 15. Almost all of us would prefer the slower speed, and that’s exactly what slow signs are for. It’s not the signs themselves that are slow, of course – if anything, they’re made to be instantly recognizable –it’s the drivers who go by them.

Some slow signs help drivers negotiate hazards that they may not see immediately, like cliffs, hairpin turns, dangerous potholes, or a playground hidden behind shrubbery. Other slow signs just tell drivers when replica watches there are children nearby who might be careless (as children sometimes are). Either way, these signs can save lives – of both drivers and pedestrians.

In these pages, you’ll learn a little about the first yield signs, the Manual of Uniform Traffic Control Devices’ perspective on slow signs, and see some of the range and breadth of this particular brand of signage.