Delhi is dressing up for the much-awaited Commonwealth Games scheduled for 2010 – new roads are being built, the focal points of the city are being connected with Metro, mall culture entering in a big way, construction work is going in for new hotels, etc. In fact, the whole city is being restructured in terms of civic facilities and ease of transportation. But, one area, which is lagging behind and not being taken up seriously, is the introduction of modern signages.

Perhaps, one would ponder that there are still three years to go for the Games and may be it is too early to talk of the signs. But, no, it is the right time for the makeover to begin. It will indeed take substantial time to change the present signs to the more technology driven signages, apart from understanding the exact need and its implementation.

You all would agree that signages mar or enhance the overall look of the city. A clutter of signs or shabby signs spoil the image while well-planned and innovative signs brighten up the city, besides giving information of various amenities, directions, etc. It shows the collective discipline attitude of people and the authorities concerned.

The bus shelters from JCDecaux were a welcome step in this direction in Delhi. These were appreciated by one and all. Lately, we have also started seeing unipoles with standard size displays on these but still all these are static signs whereas tri-vision signs could also be used to make these look interesting. Infact, there are endless possibilities to make the signs more attractive and interactive, apart from adhering to set safety standards.

Delhi is full of road signs but most of the signs used are obsolete in today’s hi-tech ambience. Take a look at the road signs internationally, which are a combination of vinyl, LEDs, neons, reflective media, etc. Such signs serve a dual purpose – giving information as well as adding colour to the roads. If one has recently visited Dubai, one would recall that huge construction activities are going on there but all these sites are strategically covered by signages, which not only make it safer for the passers-by but also give a better look. Besides, it serves as a huge advertising option, thus bringing in substantial stream of revenues. On the other hand, the construction sites in our country hardly have signages. They are eyesores for the passers-by. These sites can literally be turned into a big advertising medium as well as making roadsides look lot more brighter.

All these concepts can’t be adopted overnight. A proper planning and infrastructure is required for implementation of such signs and it is the right time to take a ‘fast forward’ action and avoid unnecessary ‘compromising’ compulsions at the eleventh hour, which is a normal phenomenon in our day-to-day activities.

– S K Khurana