"M1 Fog" Triangular sign

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XC70
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"M1 Fog" Triangular sign

Post by XC70 »

Hi. On the Southbound on-slip to the M1 at J30 a sign has just appeared this morning which says "M1 Fog" on a triangular warning sign. It looks very old and despite driving past pretty much every day for the last 15 years I have never seen it before. I assume it must have been covered over and maybe the cover has now come off in the wind. Does anyone know anything about this? Were such signs common or just unusual to this part of the M1? Thanks.
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Re: "M1 Fog" Triangular sign

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XC70 wrote: Fri Mar 15, 2019 08:10 Hi. On the Southbound on-slip to the M1 at J30 a sign has just appeared this morning which says "M1 Fog" on a triangular warning sign. It looks very old and despite driving past pretty much every day for the last 15 years I have never seen it before. I assume it must have been covered over and maybe the cover has now come off in the wind. Does anyone know anything about this? Were such signs common or just unusual to this part of the M1? Thanks.
Sounds like one of the 1960s signs that was used to warn people of fog - is it all red? If so it's from the Anderson report era and you should definitely get a photo of it.
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Re: "M1 Fog" Triangular sign

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Johnathan404
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Re: "M1 Fog" Triangular sign

Post by Johnathan404 »

Sounds like one of these (bottom-right)

I'd phone Highways England and ask them to put it in a museum!
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Re: "M1 Fog" Triangular sign

Post by c2R »

If it is, could someone in England get a photo of this - it would be great for the wiki. I'm in Ireland at the moment and not going back to England for a few weeks so won't have a chance - I can't quite justify the return ferry crossing cost just to see it, although I am tempted...
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Re: "M1 Fog" Triangular sign

Post by A303Chris »

Johnathan404 wrote: Fri Mar 15, 2019 12:28 Sounds like one of these (bottom-right)

I'd phone Highways England and ask them to put it in a museum!
Slightly off topic but what a sign from junction 12 of the M6. I get the signing for the M1 , straight down the A5 to Watford Gap and junction 18, but where did they sign the M5. Was it right, then A449 through Wolverhampton then A491 through Strourbridge to junction 4 at Lydiate Ash. Great Archive find.
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XC70
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Re: "M1 Fog" Triangular sign

Post by XC70 »

Chris5156 wrote: Fri Mar 15, 2019 12:14 Must be this one.
Yes it is this one.
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Re: "M1 Fog" Triangular sign

Post by XC70 »

I have taken about half a dozen photos just now.

It also has written on the back in pen "foggy?"!

If someone wants to PM me with an email address and I will happily send them on. Taken on a mobile phone but a decent one and in reasonable light so photos should be good enough, they are about 6mb each photo. If not I can always go back with the SLR but not tonight as it is getting dark now.
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Re: "M1 Fog" Triangular sign

Post by WHBM »

A303Chris wrote: Fri Mar 15, 2019 13:14 Slightly off topic but what a sign from junction 12 of the M6. I get the signing for the M1 , straight down the A5 to Watford Gap and junction 18, but where did they sign the M5. Was it right, then A449 through Wolverhampton then A491 through Strourbridge to junction 4 at Lydiate Ash.
I remember this one, it was indeed A449 to Wolverhampton, but then A4123, right at A456 Hagley Road and Quinton Expressway to J3, which is where the M5 for a long time started.

And I think the signed way to the M1 was A5, then A452 through Eastern Birmingham to the A45, and eventually the M45.
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Re: "M1 Fog" Triangular sign

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XC70 wrote: Fri Mar 15, 2019 18:14 I have taken about half a dozen photos just now.

It also has written on the back in pen "foggy?"!

If someone wants to PM me with an email address and I will happily send them on. Taken on a mobile phone but a decent one and in reasonable light so photos should be good enough, they are about 6mb each photo. If not I can always go back with the SLR but not tonight as it is getting dark now.
Would love to do a blog post about it if you’re willing to share the pictures! I can PM you my email if so.
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Re: "M1 Fog" Triangular sign

Post by Glen »

XC70 wrote: Fri Mar 15, 2019 18:14 I have taken about half a dozen photos just now.

It also has written on the back in pen "foggy?"!

If someone wants to PM me with an email address and I will happily send them on. Taken on a mobile phone but a decent one and in reasonable light so photos should be good enough, they are about 6mb each photo. If not I can always go back with the SLR but not tonight as it is getting dark now.
Upload them into the Sabre wiki photo gallery.
XC70
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Re: "M1 Fog" Triangular sign

Post by XC70 »

Chris5156 wrote: Fri Mar 15, 2019 18:41
XC70 wrote: Fri Mar 15, 2019 18:14 I have taken about half a dozen photos just now.

It also has written on the back in pen "foggy?"!

If someone wants to PM me with an email address and I will happily send them on. Taken on a mobile phone but a decent one and in reasonable light so photos should be good enough, they are about 6mb each photo. If not I can always go back with the SLR but not tonight as it is getting dark now.
Would love to do a blog post about it if you’re willing to share the pictures! I can PM you my email if so.
Happy to give you the photos. Just send me an email address and I will send them straight back.
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Re: "M1 Fog" Triangular sign

Post by XC70 »

Email sent with photos.
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Re: "M1 Fog" Triangular sign

Post by Chris5156 »

Here it is. It's a beauty!
m1fog.jpg
It is indeed an Anderson-type warning sign, but it would have been installed no earlier than November 1967 since that's when this length of the M1 opened to traffic. I would guess that the Anderson fog sign continued to be used until NMCS signals took over a few years later.

If you look really closely, it's only reflectorised around the border and on the white letters - reflectorising the whole sign face in those days was an expensive business and presumably couldn't be justified.

I'm pretty sure it's the oldest sign now on the motorway network and I'm absolutely certain it's the last Anderson sign. I'm going to see if I can get in touch with anyone at Highways England who can help save it because I'm a bit concerned that, now it's visible, and the state of its metalwork is going to be noticed, it'll be thrown on the back of a works van and sent to scrap.

The rest of XC70's pictures are on my blog post.
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Re: "M1 Fog" Triangular sign

Post by Johnathan404 »

"This sign requires a lot of looking after, ideally in my flat."
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vlad
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Re: "M1 Fog" Triangular sign

Post by vlad »

Johnathan404 wrote: Tue Mar 19, 2019 15:06 "This sign requires a lot of looking after, ideally in my flat."
It's not going to last long in its present location, now, is it?

It can't be long now before Chris's road sign museum opens to the public. :)
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Re: "M1 Fog" Triangular sign

Post by nowster »

I've only just stumbled across Chris's BBC podcast lecture: Boring Talks 32 - Roads That Don't Exist.
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Re: "M1 Fog" Triangular sign

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nowster wrote:I've only just stumbled across Chris's BBC podcast lecture: Boring Talks 32 - Roads That Don't Exist.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p06x6hrp
XC70
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Re: "M1 Fog" Triangular sign

Post by XC70 »

When I went past this morning it has been covered back up.
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Chris5156
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Re: "M1 Fog" Triangular sign

Post by Chris5156 »

XC70 wrote: Thu Mar 21, 2019 10:51When I went past this morning it has been covered back up.
I'll take that as good news for now!
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