Watch out!

    The Department of Transportation stresses the importance of highway safety, especially at construction sites, where the workers are sitting ducks, at the mercy of  drivers passing through the construction areas.  Caution signs are posted, with warnings of increased penalties for exceeding the speed in construction sites. 
     Although I have been told it takes seven years for New York State to implement policy changes, and so do not think the DOT would be very receptive to any input from me, I would like to offer a suggestion anyway.  As the saying goes, "if it saves only one life..."
     At this time of year, there is a lot of construction at bridges, as well as other road locales.  The flagperson in charge of directing traffic holds up a sign, instructing the oncoming drivers to either reduce their speed or come to a complete stop.  The trouble is it is the same sign, which the flagperson flips over to show the other side.  So both sides of the sign are the same size as well as the same color, and the lettering is also the same color.    The sole distinction is the wording:  one side reads STOP and the other side reads SLOW.  Now there are many reasons which could contribute to a driver's delayed reaction to those signs, but primary among those reasons is they can be difficult to decipher. The words STOP and SlOW each have four letters, Both words begin with the letter "S" and have "O" for the third letter, the letters "T" and "L" tend to blend together.  The last letters appear different, but they are exactly that--the last letter in the word.  Weather conditions are not always ideal, especially in traffic.  There can be haze, glare from the sun, and dust from the construction.  Drivers approaching construction sites should of course slow down anyway, but having to squint and concentrate on which  four letter word to obey is an unnecessary distraction.  Because of the level of activity at most construction sites, drivers need to be alert to the entire situation, and not just the sign. Often the area is posted to the point of saturation with other signs, pylons, workers, all in orange, which in themselves can tend to overwhelm  the presence of the flagperson holding a relatively small sign. 
    A modest suggestion for improvement would be for the sign to be  a different color on one of the sides, or to change the wording to GO SLOW or SLOW DOWN.   I'm sure there are many who could implement the change in a better fashion, and I hope someday it will happen.  Do we really want a bunch of visually impaired drivers staring at a highway sign as they approach it, temporarily  oblivious to everything else?