Learning the rules of the road

Are there didactic kits for learning the rules of the road in every school? is a requirement for multi-age curricula. Are they usually board games and sets containing small models of traffic signs? Unfortunately, the cost of buying large? the characters are almost normal size, often exceeding the cost of buying the real thing.

Many cities have townships with constant traffic, financed by local authorities, with steel road signs. If they are nearby and not devastated, then it is better to use them.

But what if there is no chance of the above? For many reasons (lack of fixed area, vandals, cost of signs, portability of the kit), generally the best way in a small town to learn the rules of the road and maybe check with a bike map is a set of portable road signs that can be placed on a school playground or in the sports hall. Of course, having an excess of cash, you can buy ready-made kits of this type, but looking at the prices offered by Polish distributors, they do not always seem really justified.

Road signs - drawings

bases

It usually starts with the basics from here, and we'll start with those. Most likely, the most affordable type of foundation suitable for our purposes can be found in the school sports equipment warehouse. Many educational institutions have standard rubber bases for gymnastic racks and football flags. Will they be almost perfect as the basis of the characters? all you have to do is get the PE teacher's approval and the principal's approval?

Other options are metal crossbars (including folding), steel, round bases for fencing posts and exhibition systems. For low signs used only inside, flat, lightweight plastic legs are used, on which large school globes stand. It should be assumed that the minimum width of the base should not be less than 25 cm.

Messages

While I recommend renting bases rather than buying them, should you buy poles specifically for signage? First of all, it will make installation easier and faster. Moreover, gymnastic racks in schools are usually colorful, plastic and therefore not too rigid for our purposes. Is this the same reason I don't advise using electrical conduit sizes for bike signs? despite the tempting price and uniform white color.

Our experience of using various sign rods shows that the cheapest metal broom sticks (“notched” at about PLN 2 per piece) are also not suitable for this purpose due to too thin pipe walls and, therefore, too little rigidity. However, slightly more expensive broom sticks (metal - smooth or wooden - approx. PLN 5-6 / piece) or cut-to-size aluminum pipes will do. The length of the pipes for the poles must be at least 125 cm (sticks from brooms? This is already enough for cycling).

Shield graphics

Is it worth starting with decorating dials for technological reasons? it is usually easier to cut the shield to the sticker evenly than to stick the latter precisely. Stickers seem to be the most professional technique for small amounts. If you do not plan to use the signs in the rain, you can print the signs (laser technology) on paper (e.g. self-adhesive, but you can use spray glue). Due to the availability of color xerographic devices, the optimal size is A3? which allows the use of discs with a diameter or width of 285 mm.

To do this, you can use the formulas available on the Internet, or the formula examples contained in the electronic supplement to this issue. A more water-resistant way to make decorations from self-adhesive plastic film cut on a computer plotter? but this usually requires a visit to an advertising agency and is also a more expensive solution. I do not advise gluing two sheets of A4 (very unprofessional) or painting? especially with a brush (besides, PVC does not accept most varnishes).

Signs shields

The material most commonly used for screens is 3mm thick white PVC foam. Foamed PVC has many advantages: it is light, easy to cut with a model knife, it is inexpensive, it can be bought in hardware stores. Round discs are easily cut with a specially prepared compass, consisting of a wooden plank, a nail, two screws and a knife blade. The remaining shapes are cut with a knife along a metal ruler, and then the corners are polished with fine sandpaper.

Screen connectors

Several solutions can be used to connect panels to racks. I've seen self-tapping directly to a pole (good for wooden poles, but non-separable), and mushroom mounts in car upholstery (splitable, but large and not very professional). However, in our signs, we used plastic holders to secure pipes to electrical wires. Are they cheap, white? in the color of the disks, one is enough to securely fasten the disk, it is easy to disassemble for transportation and the connection is almost invisible from the graphical side, because we connect them to the disk with two screws for sheet metal or wood (large thread pitch). The only downsides are the need to pre-drill holes in the discs and connectors for the screws (slightly larger in the shield, in connectors with a screw shank diameter) and that these connectors are only available in certain diameters (U20 - actual diameter 21mm - ideal for broom sticks , next U25?27mm).

Routes and transport

If we are placing our signs in a gym or classroom, it is best to cover the track with white duct tape. But be careful! Foil packing tapes, although the cheapest, most often leave adhesive on the floor. For the same reason, I advise you to abandon paper tapes. We will achieve much better results if we use a slightly thicker masking tape (usually bought in the same store) (unreinforced). It's twice the price - but it's worth it.

Walkways in playgrounds and paved park paths must be removable, so waterproof paints cannot be used here. The best solution is chalk in an aqueous suspension with an admixture of glue paint (there is more glue at the factory, so it usually takes a few rains for it to disappear from the asphalt).

Bicycles, bicycles, tricycles and scooters can be used to ride in our mock city.

And a little something for AR dot hunters

Since I know bike town signs are not necessarily useful to all Readers, and to give them a chance to earn points for the Active Reader contest, I also suggest making a minimum of six characters in the thumbnail? in any scale from 1:200 to 1:25 adapted for cars at home and describing them (mandatory!) on the MT forum. On the other hand, to all those who will report on our forum about the creation of their own signs on a larger scale? due to great difficulties - here I guarantee the accrual of an additional 150 points.