Traffic Signs in Phnom Penh

Over the last twenty-two months we have had to learn a completely different set of rules for driving. We have never seen a real rules for driving in Cambodia" handbook, there are some funny ones about how people really drive. A lot of our drivers education came from Elder & Sister Meinzer just after we arrived here, and we quickly learned he knew what signs meant, but just like the locals he didn't need to follow them. He enjoyed taking us down one way streets the wrong way.

We decided to share some of the signs that we see around the streets of Phnom Penh. The top row of our collage has three different no parking signs. The first one is no parking any time, the next with one I crossed out is no parking on odd days and the last with two II crossed out is no parking on even days. One of the narrow streets that we drive home from the office utilizes the no parking on odd one side and even on the others. It is an attempt to keep traffic flowing on these alleys which can really get tied in knots. The only problem is nobody follows the signs and the police do not enforce the no parking.

On the second row down is a very common sign on the major roads here, no U turn. It is also very common for the major roads to have concrete barriers down the middle to keep traffic from sprawling into the other direction during rush hour. With those barricades in place and a lot of no U turn signs many drivers figure those are for everybody else but not for them. As you can see from the second no U turn sign the only way to prevent this is close off the opening. They do have school crossing signs and Slow Down in English and Khmer.

The bottom sign is on the way to Steung Mean Chey, we know it looks completely normal other than the left turn part where there is absolutely no place to turn left. Needless to say driving here has been a true adventure.