HOW WELL DO YOU KNOW YOUR ROAD MARKINGS?

Local Car News #Update!

A few months back on my way to the office, a colleague and I were commuting via public transportation and just as we approached a zebra crossing, a young lady dashed across it.

Confused, i turned to my colleague and said “why did she run, its a zebra crossing”.

But before she could respond, the driver retorted, “why she no go run, shey she be Zebra ni?”

“Really?” I alighted still pretty shocked by his statement.

And this amongst many other experiences sadly shows that most Nigerian road users either do not know or care about road markings.

But these road markings like road signs and signals are there to help all road users navigate the roads safely.

Road markings are lines or symbols on the road that are meant to show the alignment of the roads. Ideally they are reflective so that you can clearly and safely follow the roads even at night.

There are four main types of road markings: Center lines, Edge lines, Crosswalks and Pavement messages.

Centre Lines: These are lines at the center of the road to separate traffic proceeding in opposite directions.

Broken lines are used in areas where there are no restrictions on overtaking and a solid line is painted alongside the broken line.
You should not overtake if the solid line is on your side of the center line.
Overtaking for traffic in both directions is strictly forbidden where the center is marked by double solid lines.

Yellow center lines.

Yellow solid and broken lines.

Edge lines: These are solid lines along the side of the road. They indicate where the edge is and can be used also as traffic guidance.

An edge line which slants towards the centre of the road forewarns that the road is narrowed ahead.
An edge line may be crossed only by traffic moving to and from the shoulder of the road.

Edge and centre lines.

CrossWalk: These are white solid lines across the road that are usually used to denote pedestrians’ crosswalks commonly at intersections. In this part of the world they are more commonly referred to as “Zebra Crossing” or Zebra lines.

You must stop for pedestrians at crosswalks.
A solid white line across the road, usually at intersection, show where you MUST stop for a GIVE WAY sign, STOP sign or for a red traffic light signal.
In traffic queues leave pedestrian crossing clear.

A crosswalk or Zebra crossing

Pavement Messages: These are messages or symbols which are lettered or painted on the roads pavement to warn of conditions ahead.

Pavement messages.

Another common marking is the Lane lines.

Lane lines: These are lines on the road used to demarcate the road and create spaces to guide traffic flow moving in the same or opposite direction.

For traffic in the same direction the lines are normally yellow.
Lines separating traffic moving in opposite directions are usually white.
The lines may be broken or solid, indicating whether or not they may be crossed.
Usually broken lines may be crossed while solid lines are not expected to be crossed.