Motorists on German streets have a lot on their hands besides just the steering wheel. They are also busy scanning the dense forest of traffic signs that has grown up along many thoroughfares and taking their eyes off the road.
Tiefensee, Germany’s transport minister, says he wants to thin out the overgrowth by taking down every tenth sign, according to an interview he gave to the Neue Presse newspaper in Hanover.
“The traffic jungle has to be continually thinned out and in the future, putting up superfluous signs should be avoided,” he said.
The federal government is considering working with the states to overhaul road traffic regulations.
“We’ve got to main the balance between security and the number of signs,” the minister said.