You see the signs in a lot of towns. They're rectangular and have a stick figure to warn motorists to yield to pedestrians in crosswalks.

The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation estimates that at least 5,300 signs have been placed across the state in the past 12 years.Sometimes the signs are placed in the middle of the block, not at crosswalks.The signs do not assure safety. They can even be dangerous, not only to pedestrians but to motorists who risk a rear-end collision for stopping abruptly.A few months ago in Lansford, a request was made to the borough council to place signs on Patterson Street (Route 209) at the Turkey Hill, which is in the middle of a block.The council wisely consulted with PennDOT before ruling on the request.Thomas A. Walker, assistant district traffic and operations manager for PennDOT, told council in a letter that "PennDOT approval is required prior to the installation of any midblock crosswalk on state highways."In addition, midblock crosswalks have a minimum of six requirements. Among them is the painting of crosswalks.PennDOT wrote, "The mere painting of a crosswalk on Patterson Street does not guarantee that it will be any easier or safer to cross. It is important that we understand that a painted crosswalk should not be thought of as a safety device."It says, "While it is desirable to give guidance to pedestrians as to the safest locations to cross highways, studies have shown that pedestrian crash rates are sometimes higher in marked crosswalks than at other locations, perhaps because the markings give pedestrians a false sense of security.""Although ... the Vehicle Code requires motorists to yield the right of way to pedestrians within any marked crosswalk, this does not always happen," the letter says.Walker urges that in addition to signs, other pedestrian enhancements are needed such as advance markings, and curb extensions.PennDOT says research results indicate that driver compliance increased 30 percent to 40 percent with the deployment of these devices.It is a law that motorists must yield to pedestrians, but pedestrians must obey traffic signals.Even if there are signs about crossing at intersections, being reckless can't bring back your life.While local officials mean well when they install the signs, they're not necessarily improving safety.Unless they warn motorists in advance of the pedestrian crossing areas, the rectangular signs don't mean a whole lot.Especially at night, it can be difficult for motorists to know when a pedestrian will be walking abruptly from the curb into the street.In fact, recently one person kept crossing the street at a pedestrian crossing location just to irritate motorists.Pedestrians need to use common sense, not signs.By RON GOWERrgower@tnonline.com