{"id":2660,"date":"2015-12-22T08:12:27","date_gmt":"2015-12-21T23:12:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/2015-12-22\/2660"},"modified":"2015-12-22T08:12:27","modified_gmt":"2015-12-21T23:12:27","slug":"surprises-with-new-caledonia-traffic-signs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/2015-12-22\/2660","title":{"rendered":"Surprises With New Caledonia Traffic Signs"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n

On my recent trip to New Caledonia<\/a>, I did a<\/span> fair amount of driving. As someone<\/span> with limited driving experience outside of North America and Japan, some of the street signs were not intuitive,\nsuch as this bicycle-related sign that I presented<\/span> as A New<\/span> Caledonia No-Bikes-Allowed \u201cWhat am I?\u201d Quiz<\/a>:<\/p>\n\n

<\/a>\nPanasonic LX100 at an effective 24mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>320 sec, f<\/span>\/5.6, ISO 200 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nContradiction?<\/span>\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n

To someone used to driving in North America or Japan, the sign above clearly and unambiguously means “<\/span>No Bicycles Allowed”<\/span>,\nbecause anything with a diagonal<\/span> red slash through it means “<\/span>No  whatever<\/i> <\/u> Allowed”<\/span>.<\/span><\/p>\n\n

\nno cars allowed?<\/div>\n\n

Along those lines, the sign at right would clearly mean “<\/span>no cars allowed”<\/span>, but in New Caledonia I'd see this sign at each\nexpressway off ramp, a spot<\/span> where a “<\/span>no cars allowed”<\/span> sign would be jarring to say the least. The first<\/span> time I noticed<\/span> it, it was\nat an exit that I was<\/span> thinking to take, but upon seeing the sign I quickly<\/span> changed my mind... “<\/span>No Cars Allowed”<\/span>!<\/p>\n\n

Once the initial shock wore off, I realized<\/span> that it must mean “<\/span>End of Cars-Only Road”<\/span>,\nand so in New Caledonia (and likely Europe as well), a red<\/span> slash means\n“<\/span>End of  whatever<\/i> <\/u> Restriction”<\/span><\/span>.<\/p>\n\n

So, a superficial<\/span> answer to my quiz question is “<\/span>End of Bicycle Lane<\/b>”<\/span>.<\/p>\n\n

Still, that leaves the question of why the sign appears in a spot<\/span> where the lane clearly doesn't end. The path that<\/span> continues from that point was quite new, so I just<\/span> assumed that they'd not yet removed\nthe sign from when it really was the end, perhaps due to a classic<\/span> government-worker “<\/span>not my job”<\/span> issue.<\/p>\n\n

However, as answers came in to the quiz, I had to<\/span> re-evaluate my idea of what “<\/span>Bicycle Lane”<\/span> meant.<\/p>\n\n

I had assumed<\/i> that it was a restriction<\/span> on what can travel in the lane (bicycles only), so the sign was a restriction<\/span>\nagainst cars, pedestrians, etc. But then I<\/span> realized that it could be the other way... it could be a restriction<\/span> against bicycles,\nthat they must<\/i> travel in this lane and may not<\/i> travel on the road.<\/p>\n\n

Or perhaps it's both.<\/p>\n\n

So further research brought me to this page<\/a>\non the site for French cycling-related organization, and it seems that a circular<\/i> blue-background white-bicycle sign means\n“<\/span>bicycles (and only bicycles) must<\/b> use this path”<\/span>,\nwhile a square<\/i> version means “<\/span>bicycles (and only bicycles) may<\/b> use this path”<\/span>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \n
<\/td>\n \n <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
bicycles must use path<\/td>\n \n bicycles may use path<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n\n

In retrospect, this makes some sense. While driving in the middle of nowhere on a road<\/span> with a bicycle<\/span> path,\nevery time we came to a short<\/span> narrow bridge, there'd be an “<\/span>end of bicycle path”<\/span> sign at the start of the bridge,\nand a “<\/span>bicycle path”<\/span> sign a car<\/span> length later at the end of the bridge. It seemed<\/span> to me to be an excessively verbose\nlevel of detail for a road<\/span> that might get a few<\/span> cars an hour, but if it's releasing the cyclist from an obligation\nso that they can cross the bridge, well, I guess<\/span> it makes sense. Somewhat.<\/p>\n\n

<\/a>\nPanasonic LX100 at an effective 52mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>2500 sec, f<\/span>\/2.8, ISO 200 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nA Roundabout<\/span><\/span>\nwith an “<\/span>end of bicycle path”<\/span> sign upon entrance, and in the background a “<\/span>start of bicycle path”<\/span> sign upon exit\ntaken while cycling at 18 kph (11 mph)\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n
<\/a>\nPanasonic LX100 at an effective 24mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>320 sec, f<\/span>\/5.6, ISO 200 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nJust Reminders, I Suppose<\/span><\/span>\ntaken while cycling at 21 kph (13 mph)\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n
<\/a>\nPanasonic LX100 at an effective 24mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>1000 sec, f<\/span>\/7.1, ISO 200 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nGreen Areas for Emphasis<\/span>\ntaken while cycling at 23 kph (14 mph)\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n

The first sign that surprised me was the stop sign, which looked like an American stop sign:<\/p>\n\n

<\/a>\nPanasonic LX100 at an effective 24mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>500 sec, f<\/span>\/5.6, ISO 200 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nArr\u00eatez!<\/span>\ntaken while cycling at 18 kph (11 mph)\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n

Being a country with French as the national language, I somehow<\/span> thought that the stop sign would,\nyou know, be in French, such as “<\/span>Arr\u00eat<\/b>”<\/span>. It's been more<\/span> than 25 years since I last<\/span> drove in Quebec,\nbut I seem<\/span> to recall their stop signs being “<\/span>Arr\u00eat”<\/span>.<\/p>\n\n

Then I found this page<\/a>\nthat talks about how “<\/span>Stop”<\/span> is actually a proper<\/span> French word (stop signs in France use “<\/span>Stop”<\/span>), and that because some areas\nof French-speaking Canada are so anti-English that they don't want even the possible misunderstanding that their “<\/span>Stop”<\/span> might be\nthe English “<\/span>Stop”<\/span> instead of the French “<\/span>Stop”<\/span>, so they use improper French (“<\/span>Arr\u00eat”<\/span>, which in proper French is\napparently is more of a “<\/span>bus stop”<\/span> kind of “<\/span>stop”<\/span>).<\/p>\n\n

No matter what's written on it, the red octagon speaks for itself across much of the world, so even if it said,\nfor example, \u300c\u6b62\u307e\u308c\u300dinstead of \u300cSTOP\u300d, most folks would understand. Then I started<\/span> to think about Japanese signs,\nand I realized<\/span> how opaque the must be to newcomers.<\/p>\n\n\n

Here's a Japanese stop sign: <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here's a New<\/span> Caledonia “<\/span>warning, speed-bump ahead”<\/span> sign:<\/p>\n\n\n

<\/a>\nPanasonic LX100 at an effective 35mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>250 sec, f<\/span>\/5.6, ISO 200 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nSpeed Bump Ahead<\/span>\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n

I was very disappointed to find that the trees and hammock were not standard, but stuck on this particular\nsign by some happy, mischievous soul:<\/p>\n\n

<\/a>\nPanasonic LX100 at an effective 52mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>160 sec, f<\/span>\/9, ISO 200 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nModified<\/span>\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n
<\/a>\nPanasonic LX100 at an effective 70mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>2000 sec, f<\/span>\/5, ISO 200 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nAlert!<\/span>\n“<\/span>risk of flooding 300m ahead”<\/span>, I suppose<\/span>\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n

The signs above makes complete sense, but I'd often see the “<\/span>!<\/b>”<\/span> sign alone, without any indication of what was\nbeing alerted. It felt a<\/span> bit silly. I eventually<\/span> realized that it could only mean “<\/span>Ken Thompson Nearby”<\/span>.<\/p>\n\n

In context, speed limit signs are pretty obvious no matter how they're presented. In New Caledonia<\/span>, they're numbers (kilometers per hour) within circles:<\/p>\n\n

<\/a>\nPanasonic LX100 at an effective 24mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>400 sec, f<\/span>\/5.6, ISO 200 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nSuburban Noum\u00e9a<\/span>\nnot suburban Socal\ntaken while cycling at 37 kph (23 mph)\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n

As I rode through this neighborhood, I realized<\/span> that except for the street signs and the color of the road paint, this picture\nlooks like it could have been taken in Southern California.<\/p>\n\n

As I write this blog post, I realize that I was<\/span> speeding. Oops.<\/p>\n\n

Now, let's look at this photo from downtown...<\/p>\n\n

<\/a>\nPanasonic LX100 at an effective 24mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>800 sec, f<\/span>\/5.6, ISO 200 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nNo Left Turn<\/span>\ntaken while cycling at 16 kph (10 mph)\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n

... and compare to this photo of a traffic<\/span> circle....<\/p>\n\n

<\/a>\nPanasonic LX100 at an effective 24mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>1600 sec, f<\/span>\/7.1, ISO 200 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nRight Turn Only<\/span>\ntaken while cycling at 21 kph (13 mph)\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n

Both turn-restriction signs made intuitive sense to me, but again in thinking about Japan, I realized<\/span> how different it is. When it comes to turn restrictions, Japan doesn't have signs that indicate what you can't<\/i> do\n(there are no official “<\/span>NO LEFT TURN”<\/span> signs in Japan, for example), but only what you can<\/i> do.<\/p>\n\n

\n\nJapanese“<\/span>No Left Turn”<\/span>sign<\/div>\n\n

So of the pair above, the “<\/span>Right Turn Only”<\/span> would be the same in Japan, but the “<\/span>No Left Turn”<\/span>\nsign would instead be presented as a “<\/span>Straight and Right Only”<\/span>, as illustrated at right.<\/p>\n\n

I've been driving in Japan on and off for more than 25 years, and this still gets me. I learned<\/span> to drive in America, so it's\ningrained at the neuron level to look for “<\/span>No Left Turn”<\/span> signs if I'm thinking to turn left, and not at all ingrained to look for\nsome other turn-restriction sign to see whether it happens to include the “<\/span>left”<\/span> that I want<\/span> to do. It's still<\/span> very unintuitive to\nme.<\/p>\n\n

(One exception to what I said above about Japan's “<\/span>only what you can do”<\/span> turn-restriction signs are “<\/span>No U-Turn”<\/span> signs, which\nare the same in Japan as probably everywhere on earth.)<\/p>\n\n

Anyway, that's about it for now for my musing on street signs. I'll end with this photo from the previous post,\na warning<\/span> on approach to a traffic<\/span> circle. It's my favorite<\/span> New Caledonia street sign:<\/p>\n\n

<\/a>\nPanasonic LX100 at an effective 38mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>800 sec, f<\/span>\/5.6, ISO 200 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n“<\/span>YOU DO NOT HAVE PRIORITY”<\/span><\/span>\nNo comment about who does, except that we know for sure that it's absolutely not you\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Actually, one more street-sign thing: in Japan there's one particular street sign that I think<\/span> is by far the most common,\nperhaps by an order of magnitude beyond the next-most-common sign. What is it?<\/p>\n\n

To be clear, I don't actually have any statistics to back up what I think<\/span> the answer is, but if you've spent much time in Japan,\nthe moment I tell<\/span> you my idea, you'll say “<\/span>Ah, yes, indeed.”<\/span>    Probably. \ud83d\ude09<\/p>\n\n\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

On my recent trip to New Caledonia, I did a fair amount of driving. As someone with limited driving experience outside of North America and Japan, some of the street signs were not intuitive, such as this bicycle-related sign that I presented as A New Caledonia No-Bikes-Allowed \u201cWhat am I?\u201d Quiz:<\/p>

To someone used to driving in North America or Japan, the sign above clearly and unambiguously means \"No Bicycles Allowed\", because anything with a diagonal red slash through it means \"No  whatever  Allowed\".<\/p>

Along those lines, the sign at right would clearly mean \"no cars allowed\", but in New [...]","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[30,1,2],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2660"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2660"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2660\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2660"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2660"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2660"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}