So, I came across this old debate from a while ago in the UK Parliament, and it's pretty interesting. It goes way back to 1930, and it’s all about the use of electric signs on factories and shops near major roads. Apparently, these signs, which were mostly red or green, were making drivers second-guess themselves because they looked so much like traffic signals. Imagine that, red and green neon lights on shops and factories were being mistaken for actual traffic signals, which obviously isn’t ideal for the folks on the road.
The conversation started with Captain Hudson, who pointed out that under the Road Traffic Act, highway authorities had the power to order the removal of any sign or anything that looked too much like a traffic signal. That sounded like a sensible enough approach, but then Captain Sir William Brass asked, "Who decides what counts as a problem? And that’s when things got a bit more interesting. Captain Hudson responded saying that it was actually the highway authority's decision to determine what could be mistaken for a traffic signal.
So, it seemed like the power rested with the councils, but the question was still left hanging—how could they ensure uniformity? Then, Mr. Morgan Jones jumped in, asking if the Ministry of Transport had enough insight into these various neon signs and their potential to confuse drivers. This seems like a fair question, considering it was such a new problem at the time. Captain Hudson responded, "It’s not really the Ministry’s responsibility—local councils will handle it." But Mr.
Jones wasn’t backing down. He raised the point that the Minister of Transport should be the one to take action, to make sure there wasn’t confusion across different areas. After all, these signs were becoming a nationwide problem, and if different councils were handling it differently, it could just make things worse. Now, Captain Hudson didn’t completely dismiss the issue. He admitted that the different forms of lighting were causing some confusion, and that it was something worth looking into.
He added that his boss, the Minister, was already looking into the matter, but there was no immediate solution on the table. So, while it was clear that they were aware of the issue, it also seemed like no one had fully tackled the problem yet. It’s fascinating, isn’t it, how something as seemingly small as neon signs could get debated in such a serious way back then? And it raises the question: What really happened after this debate?
Did they ever come to a concrete decision about it, or did it just fall by the wayside? I mean, this was an issue that was causing real concerns on the roads, but how did it get resolved?
If you cherished this article and also you would like to collect more info concerning LIT Labs kindly visit the web site.
