History Main / RulesOfTheRoad

Often a version of a VisualPun. See also CantYouReadTheSign.

If the speed limit sign says 250, you had better be going 250. If a yellow caution sign warns of an impenetrable snarl of an intersection, a 360-degree vertical loop, or a moose, guess what you're about to see?

Often a version of a VisualPun. See also CantYouReadTheSign

* ''Film/TheMuppetMovie'' had Kermit and Fozzie see a sign indicating a fork in the road.

* ''Wiki/SCPFoundation'': SCP-1047 is a collection of anomalous road signs that if placed in a room indoors with a suitable concentration of carbon dioxide will forcibly apply effects based on their type to anyone in the room.

* The [[http://poetsofthefall.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/Jealous_Gods_cover-550x550.jpg album art]] for Music/PoetsOfTheFall's ''Jealous Gods,'' who's CentralTheme is JerkassGods, is a battered yellow road sign with a black lightning bolt against a clear blue sky, warning of a potential BoltOfDivineRetribution from out of the blue.

[[folder:Real Life]]
* [[http://www.roadfan.com/dtclev.html#dm Dead Man's Curve,]] on I-90 in Cleveland, Ohio. Several large signs showing a sharp 90-degree-turn arrow, and signs all but screaming for you to slow down to 35... leading up to one of the sharpest curves on an Interstate highway.
** Similarly, northbound I-75 in Detroit has a 25 MPH advisory limit (not actual speed limit) at the I-375 interchange, due to the angle of the ramp's curve. Southbound I-75 itself has a 30 MPH advisory limit at the same interchange.
* Signs that warn of speed bumps often simply read BUMP, or sometimes HUMP AHEAD.
** Travel tip -- when the State of Vermont puts a sign up saying FROST HEAVE, the frost heave will be ''much'' larger than average.
** In Mexico, the signs read "TOPE" and may have a picture of the device. They tend to be very large and very steep, often enough to damage a car going much faster than 20 MPH. Residents of rural areas may build their own by felling trees.
* Speedtrap signs featuring a camera with a radar wave that says "SPEEDTRAP". Saw that flash in the night while driving? It means you'll be served a speed ticket next week.
* And signs which read "Do not back up. SEVERE TIRE DAMAGE". They are not kidding.
* Speed limits in general -- it is considered good etiquette to drive as close to the speed limit as conditions allow.
* Seen near British Army training grounds: [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Tank-Crossing.jpg tank crossings.]]
* Similarly, the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Magic_Roundabout_Schild_db.jpg magic roundabout.]] [[NotMakingThisUpDisclaimer No, that is not a Photoshop,]] they're called [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ring_junction ring junctions]] and the Highways Agency built about six of them before it became obvious that they were a terrible, terrible idea.
* Approaching Denver from the west on I-70 are several signs warning about the steep grades and sharp curves. They all have huge letters and start with "DON'T BE FOOLED" and "TRUCKERS, YOU ARE NOT DOWN YET."
* In Norway they have [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Troll1.JPG troll crossings.]]
* Also, polar bear crossings. [[http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a102/danukedev/isbjornskilt.jpg Applies to all Svalbard.]]
* In Duarte, California there is a [[http://i46.tinypic.com/2qj9310.jpg nun crossing sign.]]
* Inverted (presumably) in certain signs warning of sharp curves that may cause a truck to overturn. For some reason, the arrow on these signs always appears to indicate that trucks may spontaneously right themselves.
* "Alligator Alley" (State Road 84 in Florida) has several signs warning drivers to WATCH FOR ALLIGATORS. and brother, you'd better damned well be watching for alligators. The road is four lanes with little to no shoulder that cross through the middle of the Everglades, and alligators can regularly be found sunning themselves in the middle of the road.
* Back in the 1980s, the State Highway department office in San Antonio, Texas, posted exact-figure speed limit signs on several freeway exits about town. Instead of being rounded to the nearest multiple of 5 mph, they'd say "18" or "17" or what have you. The phenomenon attracted a lot of attention statewide, as well as a few national outlets. Sadly, whoever it was that posted the signs was replaced with a multiple-of-5 guy and the exact signs were taken down years ago.
* Some airports feature runways whose glide paths cut very close to nearby roads, and on some rare occasions, you will see a road that actually cuts across the end of the runway (the very ends of paved runways are often intended only to be used as an overrun in emergencies where a plane cannot stop on time, rather than for actual takeoffs and landings). When you see a sign warning you to "Yield to low flying aircraft", they're not kidding. A plane in flight doesn't have nearly the capability to stop for cross traffic that a car on the ground does.
** Airports/air bases particularly close to main roads may also have street-lights that are shorter than usual. Again, if you're driving along and notice the street-lights are lower than they normally are, be on the lookout for low-flying aircraft coming across...
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