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Safety Sign Project - Stop! School Ahead

  • The students designed a sign depicting a pedestrian with a traffic signal for a head, reminding drivers to stop for pedestrians at crosswalks.
  • The student artists collaborated to explore traffic issues around their school and to design concise and noticeable signs.
  • PS 194 students had the opportunity to visit NYC DOT's Sign Shop, where they learned about the materials, machinery, and processes necessary in making the traffic signs we see every day.
  • The group watched as the DOT machine cut and prepared a metal sheet to be printed on.
  • The groups learned about the importance of clarity and simplicity in traffic signage and applied this knowledge to design signs about traffic concerns in their own neighborhoods.

Project Description

Groundswell and the New York City Department of Transportation (NYC DOT) designed the Traffic Safety Sign Residency Program to engage public school students in exploring traffic safety information through the creation of original street signs. Signs designed collaboratively by students at each of our partner schools are digitally rendered by Groundswell artists, fabricated by NYC DOT’s Sign Shop, and temporarily installed in local locations students identify as in need of traffic signage. Through this program, students learn how signs and symbols can work to communicate ideas and explore visual art techniques to develop graphic images. These signs then help increase safety awareness and prevent accidents in locations around each school community. Students from PS 194 designed a sign to alert drivers to the nearby school and pedestrian activity. Two doves hold up a banner carrying the slogan "Stop! School Ahead," suggesting the hope for a peaceful sharing of the public space around the school.

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Project Info

Location: 2365 Waterbury Ave Bronx, NY 10462
Neighborhood: 
Westchester


Program: 
Safety Sign Initiative


Theme: 
Livable Streets


Year: 
2013


Partner(s): 
New York City Department of Transportation


Lead Artist(s):
Olivia Fu


Participants: 

 

5th grade students at PS 194
Medium: 
Printed Metal Sign


Fun Facts

Legend Symbol
White Dove. The white dove is used as a symbol of hope because of its mention in the Christian Bible story about Noah and the Arc, in which Noah is stuck on a boat after a flood, and sends a dove to fly and search for land and the hope of new beginnings.
Suggested Activity
Think about areas in your neighborhood that may be in need of a traffic sign. Do people drive too fast near your school? Do people roll through stop signs by your house? Design a traffic safety sign that reflects traffic issues in your neighborhood.
Legend
Research shows that chartreus (a green-yellow color seen in this sign) is the most noticeable color to the human eye. Yellows and greens are often used in traffic signage because these colors get people's attention easily.

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