Page:Report of the Traffic Signs Committee (1963).pdf/30

 The only other junction warning sign prescribed by the Protocol is a sign (Appendix III figure B) to be used on priority roads to indicate that there is an intersection ahead with a non-priority or minor road. Its meaning appears to be twofold, that the driver is on a priority road but that he should nevertheless take some care since a measure of danger exists. This sign seems to us to give a contradictory and confused message, and might encourage drivers on the priority road to ignore or take too little heed of the junction ahead. We therefore recommend that we should not adopt this Protocol sign.

In practice we do not think that the junction warning signs which we recommend will be widely required. On major roads they will only be needed on those rare occasions where there are no traffic signals and no map type advance direction sign and where drivers cannot see a side turning or the direction signs associated with it, for example, because of a bend or hump in the road. On minor roads, junction warning signs will only be needed where all the following criteria apply:

(i) there is no map type advance direction sign;

(ii) there is no Give way sign;

(iii) there is no Stop sign or traffic signals; and

(iv) the highway authority considers that a roadside warning sign is necessary in addition to the differentiating carriageway markings.

The distinction which we draw between major and minor roads is explained in our section on carriageway markings (paragraph 223 to 225).

90. The sign at figure 36 should be used wherever it is necessary to indicate the approach to a roundabout and adequate warning is not conveyed by a map type advance direction sign. Since a serious accident record has emphasised the need for ample and emphatic advance warning of roundabouts on high-speed dual carriageway roads we recommend that, where appropriate, the sign should be supplemented by a plate bearing the legend 'Reduce speed now' (figure 36a) and sited as proposed in paragraph 266.

91. We recommend the signs at figures 37 and 38, the symbols being reversed if required by the direction of the road. Where there is a succession of bends over a distance the sign at figure 39 should be supplemented by a plate as at figure 70. The word 'for' is necessary because the addition of a distance only should denote the distance ahead at which the hazard occurs.

We have considered whether any notation could usefully be added to signs giving warning of bends in order to inform drivers of the sharpness of the bend they are approaching. This is done in certain countries abroad by indicating on the sign the speed above which it would normally be dangerous for most types of vehicles to negotiate the bend. A possible alternative is to indicate the sharpness of the bend by a scale expressed in figures, say from 1 to 5. In assessing the severity of a bend not only its turning angle must be taken into account but also such factors as camber, the condition of the road surface and vehicle speeds. We believe that some notation on signs would be helpful to drivers but we recommend that further research should precede any decision on the form which this notation should take.