From War to Worboys

You are here: Home - Histories - From War to Worboys - Page 6

< Previous - Page 6 of 9 - Next >

The Worboys Committee's Drafts

Contents

Introduction
  1. 1955 Experiments
  2. 1955 Experiments cont.
  3. The Anderson Committee
  4. David Kindersley
  5. More Experiments
  6. The Worboys Committee's Drafts
  7. The Worboys Committee Reports
  8. The Effect of Worboys
  9. Conclusion

In arriving at their final set of designs, the Worboys Committee considered a wide range of ideas. As well as examining the standard European designs and the protocols of the Vienna Convention (which established international standards in traffic signs), the Committee came up with a number of ideas of its own.

Sign examples from Vienna Convention
Examples from the Vienna protocol and convention - many of these look odd today but are more logical choices.

For example, images exist of some of the experimental signs that were erected. One shows that italicised route numbers on B-roads were under consideration. Others show that for a time the Committee wanted to add diagonal bars across many signs that the Vienna Convention left open - such as "no pedestrians", "no cyclists", and very oddly, "no overtaking".

Draft Worboys Committee signs
Designs drafted by the Worboys Committee - both now use red to emphasise their message.

While the Committee eventually agreed that local direction signs would retain the blue border they gained in the 1955 regulations, a proposal that appeared concrete at draft stage but which did not make the final report was to have minor road signing in urban areas in black on yellow - this was so serious for a time that numerous test signs were erected across London.

Some of the ideas above were removed from the draft so late that they were reported in some places as features of the new traffic sign system.

< Previous - Page 6 of 9 - Next >