Language issue
We briefly take a look over the southern border, because new traffic signs in Flanders are causing a remarkable discussion. New signs above a motorway near Antwerp say Liège and Namur instead of Liège and Namur and that must be changed by the local government.
At our southern neighbors you will sometimes find double place names on the signs above the highway. For example, in Flanders it says ‘Luik (Liège)’ and in Wallonia it says ‘Gand (Ghent)’. Between brackets is the place name as it applies locally. The local traffic sign supplier apparently no longer finds this approach very useful, as became apparent recently when signs were placed above a new section of motorway near Antwerp. In addition to Breda and Antwerp, it also includes Liège and Namur. That while normally Liège and Namur would be on it anyway, possibly with Liège and Namur behind it in brackets.
That has gone down the wrong way with the Flemish government, we read through the AD bee The standard. The minister concerned demands that the signs be adjusted and simply say Liège on them. She is also surprised that the agency Roads and Traffic has started to implement this new policy on its own initiative and appoints a spokesperson The standard that it goes against the language legislation.
The agency in turn states that this approach, using only the place name applicable to the destination, would result in less confusion. After all, you follow the Namur signs in both Flanders and Wallonia to end up in Namur, but the minister has no idea about that. “The language legislation is there to be respected. I therefore ask that the relevant traffic signs at the new Antwerp-West interchange be urgently adjusted in accordance with the language legislation.”
– Thanks for information from Autoweek.nl