road sign political correctness gone mad?

Question

i read in the paper the other day that one county in England are producing roadsigns in Polish as well as English!! Is it just me or is this absolutely crazy? What about the other cultures here, should we have massive roadsigns with every language supported.. why have the Polish been singled out for preferential treatment? Surely if you come to the UK you learn English, live by the Laws of the UK and drive according to the Highway code. If you drive in this country you learn the highway code and the few required words like stop, caution, one-way...and so on. This is common sense, why are councils bending so far over to appease some people and not giving any thought to the English people any more. It seems to be English is a dirty word and we are discriminated against at every turn. I feel the world is going mad, what do you think?

As a follow up, if the Polish are saying they are breaking the law because they cannot understand them then they should be made to pass a test in the UK where they can prove they are safe to drive. It is simply a cop out blaming breaking the law on roadsigns. If anyone else did it they would be done and that is that. Ignorance is no excuse. Sorry to be hard about it but someone has to

Just for Mojo..
http://tinyurl.com/2puxc3
and here...
http://tinyurl.com/37bte8
I am not making it up and neither did I dream it.

I draw your attention to answer 39 by Mr Sceptic. For anyone to have an issue with this he accuses us of being racist. It seems I/we are not allowed to have an opinion which might conflict. Besides which, there are hundreds of French/German/Italian ect. lorry drivrs on our roads. How come they manage it ok and it's only the polish? I suggest your comment is completely unfair.

Ok, just to clarify, I have no problem with Polish people. I have Polish friends so racism isn't at issue. The issue is, for those who fail to grasp it, is the people in councils who bend over backwards to make one race feel more comfortable than the other. These people do not take into account feelings of other races. If I was Italian or French or Hindu I would be a bit miffed off to say the least. I would see it as favoritism. As for Wales, at least it is in Wales and that only came about because of a few campaining 'sons of Glyn Dower' types and the UK government made an allowance. We are talking England now...England.. Signs should be in english, not Polish, French, Hindu, Urdu or whatever else. Those who cannot see that must be wearing blinkers. Is it any wonder there is so much racial tension and that does not mean English/Foriegner, it is every one. If someone is seen getting preferential treatment then resentment will set in.
I say, Treat everyone Equal...

Answer 1

About time someone told it as it is. Its a shame more politicians dont see threads like this and realise that their meddling is causing more problems than the original problem. Im sure the Polish HGV drivers arent so thick they dont know about road diversions as they are everywhere throughout europe, its not just a problem here.
To me this just aids in segregating the different communities and does little to bring us all closer.
I have nothing against the Polish, they are hard working and are one of the better group of people to 'visit' us here in the UK but where will it all end? Part of the charm of living in England is its Englishness (is that a word? if not it should be) but I can see it in the future just being a bastadisation of everythinkness.
So, maybe someone had ought to have a word in this councils ear and say NOOOOO... no more now, desist in your bastardisation... England to remain English in its nature. No point in visiting it otherwise.

Answer 2

I tried to rate a couple of answers here but the system seems to be failing a bit. Mojo, I agree - how many of our signs are actually written, they are mostly just symbols which work as well in Russia, China or Japan (or anywhere else for that matter). No Entry doesn't have to be written, a symbol is clear enough and the same one is used throughout the world. The only signs that are usually written are directional - and so if someone ends up in Chippenham, Wiltshire, rather than Chippenham, Cambridgeshire, I doubt if anyone really worries.

The one thing that I will say is that one of the best written road signs I have ever seen was in Australia. If you look down the 'out' lanes of a dual carriage way (which would mean that if you were driving down them you would be going the wrong way), there are signs saying 'Turn Back!' If I saw a sign like that, even if it were written in Japanese, I am sure that it would make me think about which side of the road I should be driving on!

I doubt if the newspaper report was correct. They will do anything to sell their stuff!

Answer 3

It is very unfair.
I am all for internationalism. I think that Poland is a brilliant nation and the Polish workers in my home town of Harrogate are helpful nice people who are filling job positions that before would have been left vacant.
I think that Polish drivers should be able to read the basic road signs.
If I was in Spain I expect "Salida 3KM" not "Exit 2 miles" on a sign. It's not hard to learn the 30 or so words actually used on signs.
It is unfair preferential treatment and insults French, German, Czech, Spanish, Russian, Latvian, Italian and all other non-English speakers. As I said before the Poles are great but so are these other people!

Answer 4

At this late stage in the discussion I hesitated to join in but I have read every answer, all 4 pages so far, and how ironic that only 'coolkebab' has actually given the correct reason.
I do not have a problem with all the opinions that basically say when in Rome do as the Romans but folks you need to remember this. Sat nav can guide us all over Europe and the Polish into the UK, visiting truckers do not have to hold UK licences, we for our part are not tested upon our command of eg. French, ( 'Carrefour' is not just a French supermarket, it means cross roads ! ) which I could pass, but Italian, fail miserably.
These signs were put up as a purely pragmatic solution to a temporary problem. The diversion road signs were not being understood and the workforce at the road works were in real danger of being killed as the Polish truckers tried to squeeze past. I'll suffer the Polish language signs rather than see the road menders killed.

Answer 5

Your second point about abiding by the law is an excellent idea. It's a shame someone forgot to remind the people already living here to do the same. It might feel like you're being discriminated against but that's just because you don't read anything in the papers saying things like 'thousands of road signs made for english speakers only'. What do you think of the road signs in Wales then?

Answer 6

In an area with a very large population from a particular country surely it makes sense to help them find their way around doesn't it? I know a number of young Polish people who are here working and they speak far better English than many English people. Your second point about abiding by the law is an excellent idea. It's a shame someone forgot to remind the people already living here to do the same. It might feel like you're being discriminated against but that's just because you don't read anything in the papers saying things like 'thousands of road signs made for english speakers only'. What do you think of the road signs in Wales then?

Answer 7

You are not entirely right. The Poles haven't been singled out.
Apart from having signs in Welsh in Wales (which is fine because Welsh is the native language of Wales) there are signs in Urdu or Gutcherati or something in Southall, West London, even on the railway station.

I agree totally with those who state that if you can't understand the laws of the road then you shouldn't be driving. We're not talking about the odd holiday maker here. These are supposed to be professional drivers and we should expect high standards from them.

The council's not being PC, they're just wasting money. Let the drivers get lost and then they can be responsible for paying for their lazyness (yes, that's what it is - they're too lazy to learn even enough English to drive and navigate).

Second thoughts, maybe it is politcal correctness (Ugh!! Yes, that is a perjorative term, rightly so)

Answer 8

The 'pictures' on road signs are the same so there is no excuse for not recognising them.
BUT
For political correctness gone mad why do road signs in Wales have to be in both English and Welsh?
What a waste of money. Surely the Welsh have had plenty of time to learn English!
If I can drive in France and Germany - for example - and understand their road signs there is not reason at all why the Poles cannot understand ours.
It's just a con trick to get out of prosecution and our PC brigade have fallen for it yet again!
RoyS

Answer 9

It appears to be a very emotional subject this. I dont think sticking up for ones culture and way of life to be racist. I just worry where it will all end, like the taxing per mile of cars. If we do not stand up and protest over some things then we will end up in a s*ithole of our own making due to apathy and the fear of being branded racist. Some silly sod in this government might see this as the way to go forward appeasing the do gooders and immigrants and not realising the bad feeling it will undoubtedly cause. Today a few roadsigns, tomorrow, who knows, this lot in power are stupid enough to try anything.

Answer 10

I will say is that one of the best written road signs I have ever seen was in Australia. If you look down the 'out' lanes of a dual carriage way (which would mean that if you were driving down them you would be going the wrong way), there are signs saying 'Turn Back!' If I saw a sign like that, even if it were written in Japanese, I am sure that it would make me think about whi