In most cities, drivers have gotten used to locating streets by reading the small signs erected on the corner of crossroads. There are few large signs that inform motorists of upcoming cross streets or give orientation around urban centers. Most people, therefore, usually have to look at maps beforehand or rely on pure memory in trying to get to where they are going.

Showing street names at inconvenient angles at road intersections is a habit dating back some 100 years when cars and motorbikes were scarce and drivers had enough time to slowdown to glance at the small signs.

With traffic congestions now a norm, accidents can easily happen if motorists or drivers take their eyes off the road to look at a road sign. If one misses a street, it would be virtually impossible to turn around without hindering traffic flow in both directions. Car drivers attempting this maneuver would immediately cause a gridlock.

Outside of the myriad of troubles associated with identifying streets, out-of-town drivers are also clueless when trying to find their way to a popular site, a nearby town, the airport or even a city’s downtown due to the dearth of large overhead directional signage.

This significant problem, which does not exists in other developed countries such as the U.S. or Singapore, is a cinch to solve if there is political will to facilitate a policy of establishing larger signs at strategic road crossings to aid drivers in finding their way.

By Huynh Ngoc Chenh