Old Signs

The centre of Kettlewell. This one has clearly been added to over the years, but definitely not replaced. The stripey line means that this is the B6160 which leads to the B6265. I can't help but wonder - these signs are embossed with the letters, but the colour is just painted. Do the council still repaint them, or were they just this well made?

A route marker just north of Buckden. This demonstrates nicely the number-oriented American style 'route' system used pre-1963, as opposed to the present destination-oriented way. This is shown since the 'B6160' is far larger than the destination, and that this is a confirmation in pretty much the middle of nowhere, simply reinforcing the number.

A better view of the photo above.

A photo sent in by Paul Berry (of UK Roads), of not only a very nice example of an old sign, but one erected by the RAC. Before the 1963 Worboys Report the AA and RAC could put up their own signs providing they were the correct designs.

Colin Robertson supplied this picture of a well preserved warning sign for a 1-in-5 hill in Dumfries - to this day, this is the only warning of the hill.

Chris Thompson went to the Dales and, passing Dent station, spotted this nicely preserved old West Yorkshire fingerpost.

Peter White took this picture on the B1039 of a very well looked-after fingerpost.

Another view of the same sign, showing that it also has a name plate attached. Peter mentions that the whole of the B1039 is scattered with these.

Peter White also sent this picture of a cast iron sign, originally placed on a weak stone bridge. The bridge has long since been replaced, but the sign was retained and mounted on the railings of the new one. Ponderous carriages beware!

Richard Barraclough snapped this local road sign in the West Midlands. Originally the boxes within the sign would have been white-on-black, but the white paint or vinyl has long since departed. Aside from this the sign is in excellent condition, complete with a hint of a white stripe on its pole.

Chris Beckett probably saw this wall-mounted sign with his new glasses.

On the same building as the previous picture, this sign points away at right-angles down a different arm of the junction.

Colin Price visited Bristol and found the way was clearly marked by this blue-and-white local directions sign on Whiteladies Road.

In the badlands of North-West London, Laurie Akehurst took Boxtree Road in Harrow Weald and spotted this sign in excellent condition.

Not far from the previous sign, this one is on the A4008 Oxhey Lane approaching the A410. No, it's not an old sign - in fact it's quite new - but its wording is bizarre. The reason is that in the very early 1960s a route was signposted through this part of London to connect the M1 with Heathrow (then called London Airport). This sign is a straight copy of one of those, without bothering to update the wording.

Meanwhile, in South London, Ray Harrington found this sign in Surbiton, still going strong.

Back in 1979, Ray Harrington had a vision of the future and knew this page would one day bring old road signs to the masses via an unimaginable worldwide computer network. For that reason he took this picture of a sign in Mitcham, now long gone.

Another picture taken in 1979 by Ray - again featuring a personal appearance from RH White, Town Clerk.

David Jones sent in this picture of a very rare pre-Worboys warning sign.

Ray Harrington has also been busy on the Isle of Wight - at Carisbrooke Castle there's a bend guarded by these unique signs. They seem to have been carefully preserved and have a coat of fresh paint.

The corner these signs guard has single-file traffic which is regulated by a pair of two-aspect traffic signals. They are in all probability the oldest signals on a public highway - and still going strong.

The signal at the other end of the single-file section.

Starting at the junction of Holborn and Kingsway, opposite Holborn Underground station is our first pre-Worboys direction sign. This is for traffic heading north along Kingsway.

One block to the south is this beauty - a sign explaining the one-way system in force at Holborn. You can even see the joins in the black tape used to make the arrows on the map!

Another lovely pre-Worboys sign, this time on a traffic island in the middle of Aldwych, on its western arm. Notice the unusual road name sign above it.

On the Strand, a sign telling people to get in lane by advising them where it goes. The lanes are separated by a long pedestrian fence shortly after this sign.

And a final old direction sign, this time on the Strand just before it reaches Aldwych. Time has taken its toll, but it's still a good example of one of these signs.

In Stamford Street, heading east, at the junction with Blackfriars Bridge Road, is a pre-Worboys direction sign.

Walking along Southwark Street, about 200m east of the last junction, and on the north side of the road is this old road number sign.

Just across the road is a slightly different version.

One road to the south, the B300 also has an old number plate.

This one is included as it shows the previous name of the street.

Further east, Union Street has another number plate, but this time in white on black. In the 1920s, A-roads were signed in black on white, B-roads in white on black. This sign could be anything up to eighty years old.

Here's an old street name sign that incorporates the road number. A black vertical bar separates the two (and someone has fixed a cable across the sign, over the road number!).

Another example, but this time on two lines. Both this sign and the previous one include the postcode district after the road name, and this used to be painted red. Above this sign is an old-style plate indicating the presence of a fire hydrant. The more modern 71 sign is probably the bridge number. Like many other railway bridges in this part of London, the side walls are covered in white glazed tiles.

Another example of a road's previous name being included on the sign.