Another one I found in my tips file. I did not write it. I am not sure who did. Useful stuff with a bit of humor.......
Most are easy enough to figure out if you know a smattering of Spanish, and they correspond to common U.S. signs: Alto (stop), obvious by the red hexagonal sign even if you don't know the word; Una via (one way), also obvious by the white-on-black arrow; Carratera dividida a XXX m (Divided highway in XXX meters, sometimes preceded by inicio, or start); Camino sinuoso (winding road); Curva peligroso (Dangerous curve); Disminuya su velocidad (Reduce your speed); Conserva su derecha (keep to your right); Guarde su distancia (Keep your distance, sometimes followed by evite accidentes, or avoid accidents).
Others take a bit more more facility with Spanish but translate to the standard warnings: Cruce de peatones (pedestrian crossing); Cruce de escolares (school crossing); No rebase con raya continua (No passing with solid line); Utilice su cinturón de seguridad (Use your seat belt). Entrada y salida de camiones (trucks entering and exiting). Si toma no maneje (If you drink, don't drive).
Some road signs seem straightforward enough, once you manage the translation, but the subtext is as (or more) important than the words:
Topes a 100m
Translation: Speed bumps in 100 meters.
What it really means: We seriously, passionately want you to drive slowly here, and we've installed a line of metal half spheres or a line of raised asphalt across the road to prove it. If you don't slow down now, you certainly will after you vault the topes — to rearrange your internal organs and assess the damage to your car's undercarriage. This warning is just a courtesy; don't count on one next time. Reductor de velocidad
Reductor de velocidad
Translation: Speed reducer
What it really means: This is a close relative of topes, usually encountered on open road and sometimes more brightly marked; the same message applies. Often shortened to reductor, or simply to an icon on a yellow diamond-shaped sign showing a car mounting what appears to be a small hill.
Poblado proximo
Translation: Town (coming up) next
What it really means: Apply brakes now; you are entering a gauntlet of topes. The irony is that you can become so fixated on the asphalt topography that you might not notice the pedestrian stepping into the road.
Cruce de peatones
Translation: Pedestrian crossing
What it really means: A concrete island in your immediate future will launch your car to Neptune if you don't come to a full stop before easing over it. Merely slowing to 20 kmph won't spare you.
Zona de descanso or Paradero de descanso
Translation: Rest zone or Rest stop
What it really means: There is a paved wide spot up ahead where you can stop to look at a map, retrieve a fresh bottle of water out of the cooler, or get out of the way of that 20-foot-high tomato truck that's been riding your bumper. Just don't expect restrooms, picnic tables or pay phones. This is not a U.S.-style rest stop, but what we know as a turnout.
Desviación
Translation: Detour
What it really means: You are about to be funneled onto a road that isn't on your map, through the side streets of a town you didn't know existed. If fortune is smiling upon you, a stream of cars to lead you through the great unknown and eventually back to the highway. The less fortunate will eventually reach an unsigned "T" intersection with no clue which way to turn and throw themselves on the mercy of obliging locals who don't speak a word of English.
Permite rebasar; utilice acotamiento
Translation: Allow passing; use the shoulder
What it really means: If a car has been following 2 feet behind you, get the heck over to the right and let it pass, and you might all make it to your destinations. Otherwise you're just inviting the tailgater to barrel past you on a curve or a hill. (To be fair, these signs tend to be on recently upgraded roads with paved shoulders almost as wide as the driving lanes.)
Puesto de control militar
Translation: Military checkpoint
What it really means: You're about to encounter some polite young men bearing mean-looking rifles who might (rarely) just wave you through, (usually) ask you where you have come from (de donde viene) and where you are going (adonde va), or (even more rarely) search your luggage for drugs or firearms. Or not: Sometimes the barricades are unmanned, but you'll still need to slow down.
Retorno
Translation: Return
What it really means: And you thought you couldn't get from here to there because there was nowhere to make a left turn into the place you wanted to go? Just make a U-turn right here. Alternatively: You're in luck; you just realized you missed your turn a kilometer or so back, but now you have a second chance.
Glorieta
Translation: Traffic circle
What it really means: You're about to drive around and around in an attempt to figure out where to exit; if you attempt it the first time around, you'll either have to peel off suddenly from the wrong lane and run afoul of cars driven by people who know where they're going, or end up on the wrong street, driving miles out of your way before you find a retorno. (You'll rarely, if ever, see a sign with the word "glorieta," just a yellow diamond with three black arrows curved into a circle.)
Sheer bafflement
Some signs elicit a "huh?" no matter how well-versed in Spanish you are.
Conceda cambio de luces
Translation: Grant change of lights
What it really means: Dim your headlights when there's oncoming traffic. The trick is to wait until the oncoming car is within full glare before turning down the wattage; the other driver rarely reciprocates unless he or she actually sees you do it. But be careful what you wish for: An alarming number of cars roam Mexico's roadway without functioning low beams. Hitting the dimmer means they disappear into the blackness.
No deje piedras sobre el pavimento
Translation: Don't leave rocks on the pavement
What it really means: Don't leave rocks on the pavement — the question is who would put rocks on the road in the first place. Turns out, drivers who have to change a tire and brace their car with a handy rock, or who stack rocks in the road to warn traffic of a hazard ahead, have a disconcerting habit of driving away afterward and leaving the rocks to attack some other hapless driver's vehicle.
Termina seguro del usuario
Translation: End the user's security
What it really means: I have no idea. I've only seen it a few times, but it sounds ominous. Does it mean you've unknowingly passed through a secured area of some sort? Does it mean abandon hope, all ye who enter here? Readers, please chime in if you have a clue.
Doomsday warnings
Maneje con precaución — tu familia te espera
Translation: Drive with precaution — your family is waiting for you
Menor velocidad, mayor seguridad
Translation: Less speed, more safety
Despues de accidente nada es igual
Translation: After an accident, nothing is the same
Use cinturón, salve la vida
Translation: Use the seat belt, save a life
Más vale tarde que nunca
Translation: Better late than never
What they all really mean: Do what we tell you or you will surely be killed, or at the very least seriously maimed.
Parental reminders and homilies
No subtext here; these mean just what they say.
No maltrate las señales: Don't mistreat (i.e., deface) the signs
Obedezca las señales: Obey the signs
No maneje cansada: Don't drive tired
Maneje con precaución: Drive carefully
Modere su velocidad: Moderate your speed (i.e., slow down)
Esta carretera/este camino no es de alta velocidad: This highway/this road is not for high speed
Respete el limite de velocidad: Respect the speed limit
Carril izquierdo es solo rebasar: Left lane for passing only
No se estacione en la curva: No parking in the curve
No obstruya el crucero: Don't block the crossing
Encienda sus luces: Turn on your lights
Prepare su cuota: Prepare your toll
Transito lento carril derecho: Slow traffic stay in right lane
Disminuya su velocidad con pavimento mojado: Reduce your speed when pavement is wet
El peatón es primero: The pedestrian comes first
Un camino limpio es más seguro: A clean road is safer
Good to know
Here are some words and phrases that commonly appear on road signs; knowing what they mean will make life easier (and mas seguro).
Autopista: Expressway, turnpike
Autopista de cuota: Toll highway
Basura: Garbage
Camino: Road
Camiones: Trucks
Carretera: Highway
Carril: Lane
Caseta de cobro: Toll booth
Ceda el paso: Yield
Cuota: Toll
Derecho/Izquierdo: Right/Left
Derrumbes: Landslides/rockslides
Despacio/lento: Slow
Ganado: Cattle
Niebla/Lluvia: Fog/rain
Entrada: Entrance
Entronque: Intersection
Ferrocarril: Train
Frene: Brake
Grava suelta: Loose gravel
Ingreso: Entrance
Mojado: Wet
Libre: Free; no toll
No parar: No stopping
No tire basura: Don't throw trash
No rebase: No passing
Parada: Stop (as in bus or shuttle)
Pendiente prolongada: Long steep incline/descent
Principia: Begin
Puente: Bridge
Salida: Exit
Sanitarios: Bathrooms
Semáforo: Traffic light
Tramo en reparación: Section of road under repair
Tránsito: Traffic
Un solo carril: Single lane (ahead)
Vibradores: Multiple speed bumps
