Why are motorway location signs/markers in metric units?
Discussion
A random thought that was on my mind on this windy Monday.
On motorways and major A roads, these markers and location signs are used to allow emergency services to find the location of a driver (if they've called using a mobile phone for example).
These signs are installed at 0.5km intervals, and distances are shown in kilometres to one decimal place. The marker posts are installed at 0.1km intervals, and again distances are in kilometres.
I'm thinking this may be something to do with road planning, as distances for this is also done in metric measurements. But why do they use metric on these sign posts, and stick to using imperial measurements on road signs? Surely it would make more sense to keep the units in an imperial measurement.
There is the argument that metric measurements are easier to visualise than imperial, which leads to the question of why aren't all signs metric instead?
On motorways and major A roads, these markers and location signs are used to allow emergency services to find the location of a driver (if they've called using a mobile phone for example).
These signs are installed at 0.5km intervals, and distances are shown in kilometres to one decimal place. The marker posts are installed at 0.1km intervals, and again distances are in kilometres.
I'm thinking this may be something to do with road planning, as distances for this is also done in metric measurements. But why do they use metric on these sign posts, and stick to using imperial measurements on road signs? Surely it would make more sense to keep the units in an imperial measurement.
There is the argument that metric measurements are easier to visualise than imperial, which leads to the question of why aren't all signs metric instead?
aturnick54 said:
There is the argument that metric measurements are easier to visualise than imperial, which leads to the question of why aren't all signs metric instead?
Just too much hassle to change it all now I suppose, plus as soon as somebody suggests it you'd have all the GB News viewers losing their minds and vowing to cut down the metric signage. For all intents and purposes the distance markers you're talking about are completely separate from the imperial signs that drivers use so they may as well use the more sensible metric system. GroundEffect said:
As a country we're metric in any official capacity. Road traffic signs are an area of persistence in the archaic nonsense.
I always thought that, although it was a slightly odd move at the time, it was done on the assumption the UK would continue to modernise and thus would go fully metric at some point so they were avoiding needing to make changes to thousands of signs in the future. Little could they have known how regressive we would become.But maybe metric was already in standard use for more official things by that point anyway.
Roger Irrelevant said:
Just too much hassle to change it all now I suppose, plus as soon as somebody suggests it you'd have all the GB News viewers losing their minds and vowing to cut down the metric signage. For all intents and purposes the distance markers you're talking about are completely separate from the imperial signs that drivers use so they may as well use the more sensible metric system.
Possibly the cost of updating signs yes. But I'm sure the vast majority these days would be happy to see metric signs. If it were up to the GB News viewers, we'd be still using shillings and crowns.boyse7en said:
fflump said:
Not all laws relating to measures use metric units so I don't think it is correct to say we're fully metric in 'any official capacity'
You can even buy wine by the pint now, thanks to a recent change to the law. Those Brexit freedoms finally coming to fruition...aturnick54 said:
Roger Irrelevant said:
Just too much hassle to change it all now I suppose, plus as soon as somebody suggests it you'd have all the GB News viewers losing their minds and vowing to cut down the metric signage. For all intents and purposes the distance markers you're talking about are completely separate from the imperial signs that drivers use so they may as well use the more sensible metric system.
Possibly the cost of updating signs yes. But I'm sure the vast majority these days would be happy to see metric signs. If it were up to the GB News viewers, we'd be still using shillings and crowns.
GroundEffect said:
As a country we're metric in any official capacity. Road traffic signs are an area of persistence in the archaic nonsense.
I'll use that next time I'm accused of breaking the imperial speed limit. In the official capacity of the judicial system it is an argument which is sure to work.
RazerSauber said:
I don't think many care about what measurement is used when they're driving, much less will care about what the markers denote. Lower numbers = destination or landmark is closer. Doesn't matter if it's kilometres, miles or barleycorns, lower is closer.
Yeah the only real advantage in changing limits to kph is that we wouldn't have to change speedometers when importing cars. It would be more relevant if we drove on the right, but since our cars are fundamentally different anyway it's a bit of a moot point for the huge majority of people. RazerSauber said:
I don't think many care about what measurement is used when they're driving, much less will care about what the markers denote. Lower numbers = destination or landmark is closer. Doesn't matter if it's kilometres, miles or barleycorns, lower is closer.
Hmm... there is a certain amount of familiarity with measurements which counts for something. So not sure I agree that any measurement will do. When you go to the pub (if you are like me) you say you can have about 3 pints before it's time to call it a day. What works less well is to say you can drink 3 glasses of beer without knowing how much those glasses hold. They could be big glasses or small glasses and you wouldn't really be able to figure it out. Much better if you know they're pint glasses.
Watcher of the skies said:
Which goes with my earlier point. All the other road signs are in imperial. If you ask most people how far it is from town a to town b they will give you the distance in miles (apart from those that confuse distance with time).
I think that's increasingly not true of younger people. My daughter seems happier using km than miles for distance measurement (although of course that might change when she's old enough to drive). I'm about equally happy with both units but that may be because I've spent quite a lot of time driving in countries which use km. Gassing Station | Roads | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff