Tuesday, February 7, 2012

downtown directions

continuing with my series of discovering Burlington through the alphabet, we have signs for DOWNTOWN.  first up, we have this gateway sign on Brant Street letting you know you are now DOWNTOWN. there are two of them that have been around for about three years or so.

then, just in the past few months, these signs started appearing at various intersections.
to be honest, I am not sure what the blue, green and yellow represent.
the really astute among you will notice that the Visitor Information is represented by a blue strip on one sign, but a yellow one on the other. City Hall is yellow on one and blue on the other. Central Park is green, so I guess that is meant for parks, except that the Waterfront, which is also a park, is not green
I find them really confusing, especially the one on the right as it seems to direct you in a direction that is not the most direct (especially for a cyclist and these are on the bike path as it crosses side streets) and once you have gone to the end of the street that is in the wrong direction (unless you were driving) there is not another sign that tells you to turn right. at the moment it would be easier to continue across the street and cut through the parking lots to get to the next intersection that will take you right to all the places listed here.
if you were in doubt, you could check the map that is also made available. I do wonder why these were thought necessary. maybe it will be for all the new people who will be moving into the condos being built



















ABC Wednesday
signs, signs

26 comments:

  1. You'd have thought waterfront would be blue, but yellow, does that mean its a place for sunbathing:-) I bet someone has been paid a lot of money to come up with the impenetrable colour coding. Can't beat a map.

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  2. Great signs, at least people will know where they are going and not get lost.

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  3. Well, they are very handsome signs, even if a little confusing. I like your choice for D.

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  4. Not something you see much of here, small town, guess work mainly. These would be very useful for the tourists though. It is always good to know where one is lost.

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  5. Yes, you always hope that the system is logical and makes complete sense. It seems not to be so. Time to get in touch with the city council, I think. Demand an explanation. It probably doesn't make sense to anybody else either.

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  6. funnily enough I did mention my thoughts about the signs at the bikepath to a few other people and no-one had even noticed or paid any attention to them!

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  7. I've been to Burlington, though not recently. I DO appreciate good signage!

    ROG, ABC Wednesday team

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  8. That is odd. Seems like the waterfront one should be blue.

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  9. I hate to think of the hours and hours and hours of meetings that went on to come up with that whole plan.
    And now the logic behind the scheme seems impenetrable.
    Figures.

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  10. Wasn't it Petula Clark that sang "Downtown"??

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  11. Must be they look better than they are. Good post!

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  12. So much for easy to follow instructions.!!!!.....interesting!!
    Hugs
    SUeAnn

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  13. Wow! That's complicated! Beautiful coloured signs but very confusing for pedestrians, cyclists and even more for cardrivers, I think. All the same: it's a great choice for D !
    Have a great day!
    Wil, ABC Wednesday Team

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  14. I have seen some of these signs but not really studied them for accuracy. I rather liked it when the signs are not all matching - shows a bit more individuality. I also find it easier to follow a map than directional signs that so often 'disappear'.

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  15. I wish I were better at reading maps!! Bill would love these signs and would probably even figure out the color scheme.

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  16. When I go into the city (seldom) I do appreciate good signage as things have changed so much since I lived there or closer.

    Leslie
    abcw team

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  17. I shoot at signs when I'm in the city too.
    www.ewok1993.wordpress.com

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  18. Well, now that I'm totally confused!

    Too bad the city can't get their act together because the signs and symbols are nice - if they all stood for the same thing!

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  19. This is a challenging photo project you have chosen. I tried to figure out the colour coding with no luck. Now it's bugging me.

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  20. I think I might wander into the Visitor Information and ask.... (good thing I already know exactly where it is!)

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  21. Thank goodness the arrows seem to be pointing in the correct way. I do no get the color coding either...maybe there isn’t any and the painters just painted the signs the way they want to paint them. Still, this is a colorful and interesting post and your commentary is one I ]]to which I can relate. genie

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  22. Thank goodness the arrows seem to be pointing in the correct way. I do no get the color coding either...maybe there isn’t any and the painters just painted the signs the way they want to paint them. Still, this is a colorful and interesting post and your commentary is one I ]]to which I can relate. genie

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  23. Not really sure what downtown means. The same as we'd mean by up town, I assume?

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  24. Downtown is the same as City Centre

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  25. A lot of signs. They can be confusing. I try to follow a map on paper or on a small GPS to find my way.

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