Warning Sign/Ice

Ice or Snow Drifts

The Ice Likely sign

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TSRGD ref :

554.2, 554.3

From :

1994

To :

present

Common Plates :

Ice • Snowdrifts • for x yds / miles

Pre-Worboys sign

There is no known pre-Worboys warning sign for ice.

Worboys Report sign

The original Worboys warning sign for an ice or drifting snow hazard was a version of the worded warning sign (diagram 554) containing the text "Ice" or "Snow drifts" in the warning triangle.

This was replaced in 1994 by a pictorial sign with a symbol in a snowflake pattern in black on the white background within the red triangle. This new sign is numbered 554.2, it should always be accompanied by supplementary plate 554.3 which gives the nature of the ice or snow hazard. It includes the text "Ice" or "Snowdrifts" and can also state the distance over which the hazard extends with "for" and a distance in yards or miles.

Many of the Ice signs are mounted on hinged back boards, so that they could be folded up, out of view, during the summer months. However in recent years the signs have been left open, and in some cases fixed open, so that the 'Ice Likely' sign is visible in the height of summer!

Prior to the introduction of the modern pictorial sign it was common in some areas to use the slippery road ahead (diagram 557) warning sign accompanied by a plate with the text "road liable to icing" to warn of a likelihood of ice.

On occasion temporary signs warning of ice are still seen on our roads. These do not always feature the new symbol, but instead sometimes use the Other Danger "!" symbol with "Ice" on a plate below. Similar signs are also mounted on permanent posts in a few places.