I've noticed two "Slow Children" signs in town that are missing the letter "l". Any explanations?
"I've been a cop for 24 years, this is the first I've ever heard of signs misspelled," says Lieutenant Tom Comstock of the Ridgefield Police Department. The "L"less signs are located on Olmstead Lane and Florida Hill Road.
But, two signs both missing the same letter? "It could have been out of the same batch, that's all that would mean. The guy who makes them up, he slams the laminate down and calls it a day. It wouldn't surprise me," says Comstock.
Comstock is not sure who was responsible for producing the signs on Olmstead Lane or Florida Hill Road. Presently, Bethel based East Coast Signs creates the signs for the town, but Ridgefield has used various companies to manufacture signs in the past. There’s one thing for certain, the company doesn’t care much for the letter “L”..
Who decides where to put Slow Children signs? "Typically, Slow Children signs are put on dead-end roads where kids play in the cul-de-sacs," says Comstock. Occasionally, the Ridgefield Police Department receives requests from residents for Slow Children signs. “The police commission is the traffic authority in the town so if you want a sign put up, you request that in writing to them. They send me out to look at the area and I apply the rules & regulations, go into our records to see if any accidents have occurred there, and then I make a recommendation regarding whether or not to put up a sign,” explains Comstock.
The Town Highway Department assists Comstock in sign installation and "The Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices" serves as their guide. "It explains how to put the signs up; how high they must be, if they need an engineering study." But, according to Comstock, Slow Children signs are missing from the manual.