Well, when I went to the States, I found that there was a lot more written signs ("Yield"...) that in Europe. I was mostly referring to traffic advisories on electronic board above highways, or maybe a "slow down, children playing" when arriving in a residential area or village (in addition to the circular red and white '50' indicating a speed limit of 50km/h). In fact, all those 'interntaional signs' are supposedly the same in all Europe (as the driving licence is the same). Or else a pedestrian zone sign with "except delivery" written in the locak language under it.Originally Posted by CC1
Some countries have a few unique signs. Belgium has a harasssing "priority-on-your right" rule marked by a red and white triangle with a black X in the middle. When nothing is indicated, it is the default, except on main roads marked by a yellow and white losange.
In a densely populated country like Belgium, with motorway exits every few kilometers, when you are looking for "Mons" and signs only show an exit for "Bergen", what do you do ? Yet, it's the right exit. Then, road signs are not just about finding your way. If you find a no No Stopping Zone sign, but another sign under it mentioned "only from Monday to Friday" in a language you don't know, you may miss an opportunity to find a parking place on a weekend. And European towns tend to have narrow streets and few parking areas...I mean...if you have a map, you really don't need to read the signs in order to know where you are going.
Here are some examples of European road signs (Italy in this case, but there is hardly any difference, except the few with Italian words).
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