Replace 'insulting' sign - pensioners

PENSIONERS' rights campaigners in the Westcountry have backed a call to replace road signs which they say give a "negative" image of elderly people.

The traffic sign depicting a hunched couple with a walking stick, warning motorists to watch out for vulnerable pedestrians, has been a familiar sight on the roads since the 1980s.

Campaigners are now calling for it to be replaced because they claim it is insulting to today's fitter and more active older citizens. They say it should either be replaced with a more fitting image or with reduced speed limits to safeguard elderly pedestrians.

Lizzy McLennan, Help the Aged senior policy officer, said: "The sign portrays a small proportion of the older generation. Very few older people are hunched over, with a walking stick. They are assuming everyone who is old looks like that, and they don't."

Gordon Lishman, director general of Age Concern, said: "The motivation behind these signs – to make drivers more careful of their speed in areas with residential care homes – is positive. In practice, a reduced speed limit in such areas, as implemented in school districts, would be a more welcome way to achieve this."

Martyn Rogers, director of Age Concern Exeter, agreed. He said: "I would go along with the fact that it's a negative image that labels all elderly people as being stooped and infirm, which of course is a long way from the truth. Maybe in some areas we need to have something which says be aware of pedestrians in general."

Although he accepted the signs could be seen as simply a symbolic way to represent a certain group, rather than a direct insult, Mr Rogers said: "It's still a subliminal message among many others that just helps to make this an ageist society."

He said the cost of replacing the signs would be a "drop in the ocean" and he thought the Government should support the notion of having signs that "do not discriminate against a certain group or show a certain group in a negative light".

However, the Taxpayers' Alliance described the objections as ridiculous and a waste of public money.

Campaign director Mark Wallace said: "They should pay more attention to the real concerns of older people – rising taxes and soaring household bills."

Wailim Wong, South West spokesman for the Department for Transport, said there were no plans to change the signs in the near future.

He said: "The official purpose of the signs is to warn drivers that people with walking difficulties of any age could be crossing the road and may need extra time."

The word elderly is no longer used in the Highway Code's description. "It now says, 'Frail or disabled people are likely to cross the road'," said Mr Wong.