A ‘Keep Clear’ sign in Kingswinford, West Midlands has been painted on the road, reading ‘Keep Claer’. The error has caused conflicting reactions among residents, ranging from humour to annoyance. One resident, Bill Chapman, aged 56, thought the sign was quite fitting, as that is how the word would be pronounced in a Black Country accent. Another resident, Irene Willis was dumbfounded as she said:
“I can’t believe they could be so stupid- a child could spell that.”
Mrs Willis also expressed annoyance as it would probably end up costing taxpayers more money to have the error rectified. However, Patrick Harley, a Dudley councillor and cabinet member for transportation acknowledged the error that had been made, assuring residents that the private contractor that made the error, would put it right at no cost to the council.
Dudley council aren’t the first to make spelling errors in road signs. Contractors who were painting road markings in Dewsbury, painted the sign ‘Bus Stop’ as ‘Bus Sotp’. Again, the contractor rectified the error at no extra cost to the taxpayer.
Spelling errors and grammatical mistakes reflect poorly on the company concerned, even if the errors were made by contractors. The council appear incompetent when in fact, they outsource to private contractors for a number of jobs.
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