Colours of Road Signs
Road Sign Colours
on UK traffic signs, there are 8 key colours worth learning for the theory test:
Red — prohibition, restriction or warning emphasis.
Blue — mandatory instructions and information; also used on motorway signs.
Green — primary routes.
White — local/non-primary routes and general information.
Brown — tourist attractions and facilities.
Yellow — temporary signs, diversions and some parking/waiting information.
Black — Loory routes, Motorway junction numbers
Grey — commonly used to show the end of a restriction, particularly on signs where a previous restriction is cancelled.
Light green — relatively rare. It can be found on signs such as Quiet Lane signs and certain directions for emergency services.
Orange — very rarely used on the actual sign face. It is associated particularly with emergency telephone equipment and signs directing drivers towards it.
Red Road Signs
Red — generally indicates danger or prohibition.
Red borders are used on triangular warning signs, while red circles are commonly used for prohibitions.
Red also appears on some temporary and specialist signs.
Yellow Road Signs
Yellow — primarily used to attract attention.
It appears on parking, waiting and loading restrictions, and yellow backgrounds are also commonly used for temporary directions and diversions.
Blue Road Signs
Blue — commonly indicates mandatory instructions or information.
Blue is also the background colour for motorway direction signs and is used on parking and some cycle signs.
Dark Green Road Signs
Dark green — used as the background colour for direction signs on primary routes.
Route numbers on these signs are normally shown in yellow.
White Road Signs
White — widely used as a neutral background.
On direction signs, white with a black border identifies non-primary routes.
Black Road Signs
Black — mainly used for lettering and symbols, but black-background direction signs can be used for HGV routes.
Small black panels can also identify junction numbers.
Black HGV signs always include a lorry symbol to make it clear who they are intended for.
Brown
Brown — used on direction signs for tourist destinations and attractions and places of interest
Light Green
Light green — relatively rare. It can be found on signs such as Quiet Lane signs and certain directions for emergency services.
Orange
Orange — very rarely used on the actual sign face. It is associated particularly with emergency telephone equipment and signs directing drivers towards it.
Grey Road Signs
Grey — another uncommon colour, used in limited situations including the end of certain bans or restrictions and parts of some weight-restriction signs.
