Drivers put at risk by illegal road signs

ONE ILLEGAL road sign a day is being put up in high-risk hotspots in part of Yorkshire, putting drivers at risk of serious accidents.

Between April 1 and September 12 this year, 154 companies and organisations were asked by East Riding of Yorkshire Council to remove signs placed on highspeed roads, near junctions, on roundabouts and at traffic lights.

Taskforce and enforcement service manager Paula Parker told councillors that studies showed roadside adverts “can adversely affect drivers’ decisionmaking times and may be a factor in road traffic accidents”.

Councillors were told that the council takes a pragmatic, riskbased approach to signage enforcement, rather than zero-tolerance, in an attempt to balance business needs with the duty to maintain a safe highway.

The council’s highways enforcement department deals with about 30 businesses and organisations every month who place signs on the highway, with many erecting multiple signs.

One firm put up more than 100 signs to promote an event despite warnings from the council – and was eventually prosecuted for failing to take action.

Concerns were expressed at a council meeting surrounding the mixed messages given out by the council, as some roundabouts were officially sponsored by private companies.

Two roundabouts on the A164 in Willerby, sponsored by a celebrity hairdresser and a private dentist, were cited by Coun Denis Healy, who said he could not understand why that it was not deemed a “high-risk area” and why signs were allowed there.

But he was told the signs were part of a “gateways and corridors” project several years ago and had passed a risk assessment – unlike those which had appeared unannounced.