The Traffic Signs Regulations and General Directions 2002

Permitted variants of upright signs

17.—(1) This regulation applies to a sign shown in a diagram in a Schedule other than Schedule 6 and such a sign is in this regulation called an “upright sign”.

(2) The form of an upright sign shall, if the circumstances in which it is placed so require, or may, if appropriate in those circumstances, be varied—

(a) in the manner (if any) allowed or required in item 4 of the untitled table below or beside the diagram; or

(b) in the manner allowed or required in column (3) of an item in Schedule 16, if the diagram is one whose number is given in column (2) of that item.

(3) A symbol in the form of a prescribed sign to which direction 7 of the Traffic Signs General Directions 2002 applies shall not be incorporated in a sign in accordance with item 31 of Schedule 16, except in circumstances where it could be placed as a sign in accordance with that direction.

(4) A symbol incorporated as mentioned in paragraph (3) shall or may be varied in the same manner as the sign which the symbol represents or from which it is derived.

(5) In each of the signs shown in diagrams 780A, 780.1A and 780.2A the safe height shown on the sign shall be varied where necessary so that it is between 1 foot 3 inches and 2 feet (380 to 600 millimetres) less than the height of the lowest part of the overhead wire, of which the sign gives warning, over the highest part of the surface of the carriageway beneath that wire.

(6) Where a sign shown in a diagram in Schedule 7 indicates a road or a route, and that road or route is temporarily closed, there may be affixed to the sign or to that part of the sign where that road or route is indicated, in order to cancel temporarily the indication, a board coloured red and displaying in white lettering the words “Road temporarily closed” or “Route temporarily closed”.

(7) In this paragraph and paragraphs (8) and (9)—

(a) “combination sign” means a sign shown in diagram 7201, 7210, 7211.1, 7212, 7213, 7214, 7215, 7216, 7217, 7218, 7220, 7221, 7230, 7231, 7232, 7233, 7234, 7235, 7236, 7237, 7238, 7239 or 7240;

(b) “panel” means a sign shown in diagram 7260, 7261, 7262, 7263, 7264, 7270, 7271, 7272, 7274 or 7275 when used as part of a combination sign and references to a panel whose number is shown in a table of combinations are to a sign shown in a diagram having a number so shown;

(c) “permitted combination” means one of the combinations specified in paragraph (9);

(d) “the table” in relation to a combination sign means the table of combinations appearing below or beside the diagram in which that sign is shown;

(e) “top panel” means a panel shown at the top of a combination sign and “bottom panel” means a panel shown at the bottom of such a sign.

(8) If and only if the top and bottom panels of the sign as varied together constitute a permitted combination, a combination sign may be varied in the following ways—

(a) by substituting for the top panel or, where a top panel is not shown, by adding as a top panel, a panel whose number is shown in item (1) of the table;

(b) by substituting for the bottom panel or, where a bottom panel is not shown, by adding as a bottom panel, a panel whose number is shown in item (2) of the table;

(c) if the word “none” appears in item (1) of the table, by omitting the top panel;

(d) if the word “none” appears in item (2) of the table, by omitting the bottom panel.

(9) Each of the following is a permitted combination—

(a) a top panel whose number appears in item (1) of a column in the table and a bottom panel whose number appears in item (2) of the same column;

(b) a top panel whose number appears in item (1) of a column in the table and, if the word “none” appears in item (2) of the same column, no bottom panel;

(c) a bottom panel whose number appears in item (2) of a column in the table and, if the word “none” appears in item (1) of the same column, no top panel;

(d) if the word “none” appears in both items of the same column of the table, no top panel and no bottom panel.

(10) Where an upright sign indicates a weight in tonnes using the symbol “T”, that symbol may be varied to “t”.

(11) Where the form of an upright sign is varied in accordance with these Regulations, the information, warning, requirement, restriction, prohibition or speed limit conveyed to traffic by the sign is varied to accord with the form of the sign as varied.