If you are preparing to take the Japanese driver's license exam, or you are already driving in Japan and are not familiar with Japanese road and highway signs. In this article, we will see several Japanese traffic signs and signs for you to compare with the Brazilian ones.
As in Brazil and in the rest of the world, Japan has 3 types of plates, regulatory, warning and indication. They are a little different from the Brazilian ones but both follow an international standard. In this article, we're going to show you a picture with all the plates in each category and I'm going to highlight and talk about some, others you don't need that are pretty obvious.
It is worth noting that Japan uses ground traffic signs in addition to the plaques. You can find speed indications, stop signs, and various other information on the ground. Cyclists and pedestrians must also obey the laws of traffic in Japan because they are subject to fines. Be very careful because the laws and punishments in Japan are severe and keep everyone in line.
Table of Contents
Japanese Regulatory Boards
The regulatory signs (規制標識 - kiseihyoushiki) aim to inform s about conditions, prohibitions, obligations, or restrictions on the use of the road.
The Japanese stop sign is a red triangle pointing down with the text tomare (止まれ) which means stop. Prohibition signs are round with white backgrounds, red borders, and blue pictograms. Mandatory instruction signs are round with blue backgrounds and white pictograms.
通行止め (301) - Estrada Fechada para todos - No entry - Indicates that no one can through here, not even pedestrians. The second sign states that entry is closed to vehicles. Meanwhile, the red sign indicates only that vehicle entry is prohibited. Be careful not to confuse the sign of No entry with the Brazilian customs plate that is somewhat similar.
No stopping or no parking signs may have a number indicating the times when parking or stopping is prohibited. ing that the stop in Japan is a maximum of 5 minutes and the driver must be inside the car.
Notice the 2 signs written joko (徐行) which means slow and slow pace. The first sign advises you to walk slowly at a speed that allows you to stop if needed. The second sign has another sign underneath indicating mandatory preference. On the last sign, we have the famous tomare which means mandatory stop.
Blue signs with arrows usually show the required and permitted direction. There are other blue signs left out or rare, but they all indicate something you should follow or do.
Warning Signs - Warning Signs
Warning signs don't need much explanation, they serve to warn something that will or may happen on the track. Things like weird curves, animals and others. They alert s to potentially dangerous conditions, obstacles or restrictions existing on or adjacent to the road, indicating the nature of these situations ahead, whether permanent or occasional. These traffic signs are usually found 30-200 meters in front of the warning, and need your attention.
The Japanese warning signs or warnings (警戒標識 - Keikai hyōshiki) are in the same shape, yellow and diamond-shaped. However, some Japanese warning signs are different and deserve attention. We can observe that the only difference in some Japanese signs is that the animals or people walking on them are facing the opposite direction, this is because traffic there is on the other side.
The exclamation point indicates other unspecified hazards. We can also notice that the plates indicate specific animals such as rabbits, monkeys and raccoons. There is a sign to indicate dangerous gusts of wind (third from second column). The second plate in the first column shows the danger of falling stones. The last sign indicates that the place is slippery.
Other traffic signs in Japan
The indication signs in Japanese are called shiji hyoushiki (指示標識) and can be literally translated as instruction markers. They come in various formats and are usually blue.
Different shields indicate the route or name of the road. Common routes usually have a blue shield, while express roads have a green shield. In Japan there are crosswalks that allow cyclists to along with pedestrians, while in Brazil we need to get off the bike.
There are other signs with information on intersections, cities, neighborhoods, train stations and even escalators.
auxiliary tags (Hojo hyoushiki - 補助標識) - In Japan, some plates may come with an auxiliary label. They are rectangular and white plates with some specific information.
Pay attention to some words found on these auxiliary boards:
- ここから- koko kara - From here;
- ここまで - koko made - So far;
- 停 - Ideogram that means stop (not as a verb);
- 終点 - shuuten - Period;
- 始点 - shiten - Starting point;
- 注意 - chuui - Caution, attention, care
- 入口 - iriguchi - Entrance
- 出口 - deguchi - Exit
to always walk on the left side of the road, whether by bicycle or by car. The right side of the road is for pedestrians, so be careful with them. Be careful with the signs that play tricks, they hide in hard-to-see places.
Thanks for reading our article, I hope you now have a basic understanding of Japan's traffic signs and signals. If you have any signs or important information, you can add them in the comments. We appreciate the shares and comments.
Transferring your Driver's License to Japan
The only option, if you are living in Japan, is to retake all the tests and obtain a new driver's license. This process is simplified if you already have a Brazilian driver's license. You only need to retake the theoretical and practical exams.
To make this process easier, Kirizawa took an online course to get her driver's license in Japan. A course at a much more affordable price than paying for classes or interpreters. If you want to know details, just access the link in the button below:
