MINNESOTA, USA — From the cultural references to the funny and punny, those highway signs have been getting subtle chuckles from Minnesota drivers for several years.
But now the federal government is saying cool it with the jokes, but there's technically no outright ban on humor.
Drivers say those funny signs above their commute certainly catch their attention. Federal officials say that's the issue.
The new federal standards published this month say messages "with obscure or secondary meanings, such as those with popular culture references" or ones "intended to be humorous" should not be used.
But so many love the Minnesota Department of Transportation's Message Monday campaign that started in 2016 meant to open the conversation around traffic safety.
MnDOT said there's a lot of confusion surrounding these standards. The organization denied interview requests but they did give a statement.
MnDOT said it's aware of the new guidelines and that "we do not anticipate they will change the way MnDOT shares creative highway safety messages."
MnDOT signs
It said it will continue to work with federal partners, but see the value in its clever signs.
"We believe these messages are an important part of improving the culture of traffic safety in Minnesota, and why we will continue our Message Monday campaign," the statement read.
The Federal Highway Administration also gave a statement, clarifying there is no outright ban on humor or pop culture references.
It did include a recommendation to avoid funny sayings in those signs that "may confuse or distract drivers."
"You don't want to distract drivers," said Joshua Madsen, an associate professor at the University of Minnesota's Carlson School of Management. He has studied the impacts of signs related to traffic fatalities in Texas.
"We came away with this conclusion that these signs actually can take too much attention away from the task at hand," said Madsen.
He says although he notes there is likely some level of distraction by the signs, there isn't enough research on humorous messages to support the new standards.
"Some states certainly have taken the humor to an extreme, right?" said Madsen. "I also think this policy is extreme in just saying let's get rid of it all. It's a conservative approach, I want to emphasize that it's conservative. But more research needs to be done."
The Department of Public Safety also issued a statement about potential changes to the road signs.
"We respect and agree with the changes they are making in regards to the use of these important public messaging tools," said Office of Traffic Safety Director Mike Hanson.
"We respect and agree with the changes they are making in regards to the use of these important public messaging tools," said Hanson.
When asked about the office's reaction to MnDOT's statement stating won't be changing their signage, they said they had nothing to add to their previous statement.
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