Traffic signs in post-Soviet states
Road signs in the post-Soviet states Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Estonia, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine and Uzbekistan are largely similar to the Soviet road sign system, as these countries were part of the Soviet Union until its dissolution in 1991. However, in some countries of the former USSR, some road signs may look different from the Soviet ones. The Soviet Union was a signatory to the 1968 Vienna Convention on Road Signs and Signals.[1] After the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, most of the post-Soviet states adopted their own road sign standards. Many of them use road sign systems that inherited the road sign system used in the Soviet Union before 1991, but with some modifications, except for Estonia and Latvia that use completely different road sign systems. Estonia and Latvia have their own road sign systems, which are very different in design from the Soviet one. Modern road signs in Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Estonia, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine and Uzbekistan comply with the Vienna Convention on Road Signs and Signals as well as most European countries. Of the 15 former post-Soviet states, only Belarus, Russia and Ukraine have signed and ratified the Vienna Convention on Road Signs and Signals on behalf of the Soviet socialist republics. These 3 countries have ratified this convention on 18 June 1974.[2]
The standard for road signs, GOST 10807-78, was initially adopted in the Soviet Union on 1 January 1980, and remained in effect in several years in Russia and some post-Soviet states after the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991.[3][4] However, since 1 January 2006, this standard has become invalid in Russia and has been replaced by GOST R 52290-2004.[5][6][7]
Also, a similar road sign system is used in Mongolia, despite the fact that it was never part of the Soviet Union. Road signs in Mongolia are regulated in the MNS 4597:2014 standard.[8][9]
All post-Soviet states drive on the right. Each of these countries also use metric system; thus speed limits are in kilometres per hour, and distances are in kilometres or metres.
Road signs in each of the 15 post-Soviet states are regulated by the following documents:
| Country | Document |
|---|---|
| Armenia | Հայաստանի հանրապետության Ճանապարհային երթեվեկության կանոնները եվ տրանսպորտային միջոցների շահագործումն արգելող անսարքությունների եվ պայմանների ցանկը հաստատելու մասին (Hayastani hanrapetut’yan Chanaparhayin yert’evekut’yan kanonnery yev transportayin mijots’neri shahagortsumn argelogh ansark’ut’yunneri yev paymanneri ts’anky hastatelu masin)[10] |
| Azerbaijan | Azərbaycan Respublikası Yol Hərəkəti haqqında qanun, Yol nişanları[11] |
| Belarus | СТБ 1140–2013 «Технические средства организации дорожного движения. Знаки дорожные. Общие технические условия» (in Russian) / СТБ 1140–2013 «Тэхнічныя сродкі арганізацыі дарожнага руху. Знакі дарожныя. Агульныя тэхнічныя ўмовы» (in Belarusian)[12] |
| Estonia | Liiklusmärkide ja teemärgiste tähendused ning nõuded fooridele[13] |
| Georgia | საგზაო მოძრაობის შესახებ (Sagzao modzraobis shesakheb)[14] |
| Kazakhstan | СТ РК 1412–2017 «Технические средства регулирования дорожного движения. Правила применения» (in Russian) / ҚР СТ 1412–2017 «Жол қозғалысын ұйымдастырудың техникалық құралдары. Қолданылу ережелері» (in Kazakh),[15] СТ РК 1125–2021 «Технические средства организации дорожного движения. Знаки дорожные. Общие технические требования» (in Russian) / ҚР СТ 1125–2021 «Жол қозғалысын ұйымдастырудың техникалық құралдары. Жол белгілері. Жалпы техникалық талаптар» (in Kazakh)[16][17] |
| Kyrgyzstan | Правила дорожного движения (in Russian) / Жол кыймылынын эрежелери (in Kyrgyz),[18] ГОСТ Р 52289-2019 Технические средства организации дорожного движения. Правила применения дорожных знаков, разметки, светофоров, дорожных ограждений и направляющих устройств[19] |
| Latvia | LVS 77-1:2016 „Ceļa zīmes. 1. daļa: Ceļa zīmes”, LVS 77-2:2016 „Ceļa zīmes. 2. daļa: Uzstādīšanas noteikumi”, LVS 77-3:2016 „Ceļa zīmes. 3. daļa: Tehniskās prasības”[20] |
| Lithuania | Dėl Kelių eismo taisyklių patvirtinimo[21] |
| Republic of Moldova | Cu privire la aprobarea modificărilor și completărilor ce se operează în Regulamentul circulației rutiere[22] |
| Russia | О Правилах дорожного движения,[23] ГОСТ Р 52289-2019 Технические средства организации дорожного движения. Правила применения дорожных знаков, разметки, светофоров, дорожных ограждений и направляющих устройств[19] |
| Tajikistan | Қоидаҳои ҳаракат дар роҳ[24][25] |
| Turkmenistan | Ýol hereketi we howpsuzlygy[26] |
| Ukraine | ДСТУ 4100:2021 Безпека дорожнього руху[27] |
| Uzbekistan | Yo'l harakati qoidalarini tasdiqlash to'g'risida / Йўл ҳаракати қоидаларини тасдиқлаш тўғрисида[28] |
Overview
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There may be variations in the post-Soviet states' road signs despite the fact that many of them adopted the road sign system used in the Soviet Union prior to its dissolution in 1991. The main differences between traffic signs in post-Soviet states relate to:
- Graphic design details
- Local regulatory significance
- The colour-coding of directional signs
- Local language texts (in most post-Soviet states traffic signs can be bilingual or sometimes trilingual). In most post-Soviet states, the names of settlements and geographical objects can be written both in the country's official language and in English or in Latin script, mostly in countries that use non-Latin scripts in their official languages. Previously, the Soviet Union used primarily Russian on road signs, as well as the languages of the republics that were part of the USSR before they get an independence from the Soviet Union between 1990 and 1991. Below there are differences between local language texts in today's post-Soviet states:
- Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan and Ukraine (including territories occupied by Russia since 2014 during the Russo-Ukrainian war and its subsequent Russian invasion of Ukraine since 24 February 2022, and Crimea annexed by Russia) mostly use Cyrillic script on road signs. Armenia and Georgia use Armenian and Georgian scripts on road signs respectively. Cyrillic script is also used on road signs in territories of post-Soviet states occupied by Russia: the unrecognised Transnistria (a result of the Transnistria War in 1990–1992), partially recognised Donetsk People's Republic, Luhansk People's Republic (a result of the War in Donbas in 2014–2022), Abkhazia and South Ossetia (a result of the wars in Abkhazia in 1992–1993 and 1998, the 1991–1992 South Ossetia War and the 2008 Russo-Georgian War).
- Azerbaijan, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan mainly or solely use Latin script on road signs since their official languages use Latin script. Azerbaijan, Moldova, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, which previously used Cyrillic script in their official languages, switched to Latin script in the 1990s after the collapse of the USSR. Recently, in Kazakhstan, as part of its possible shift to the Latin alphabet in Kazakh, the Latin script on road signs is actively used.
- Number of categories of road signs ‒ the Soviet standard GOST 10807-78 divided signs into 7 categories, and this division was preserved in most post-Soviet states after the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, in all countries except for Armenia, Russia and Kyrgyzstan who instead have 8 categories of road signs.
Typefaces
[edit]- Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Lithuania, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine and Uzbekistan use typefaces based on one specified in a Soviet standard GOST 10807–78.[3] For example, in Belarus, the applicable standard is STB 1140–99; in Ukraine, it is DSTU 4100–2002; In Russia, it is GOST R 52290–2004; and in Kazakhstan, it is ST RK 1125–2002.
- Azerbaijan, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Lithuania, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine and Uzbekistan may use the Arial Bold typeface in road signs instead of one specified in a Soviet standard GOST 10807–78, especially in numerals on speed limit road signs, directional, and informatory signs.[5] Also, the Helvetica typeface is sometimes used in road signs.
- In Kazakhstan, the Helvetica typeface is sometimes used in directional road signs instead of Arial Bold.
- Georgia uses the BalavMtavr and Arial Black typefaces on road signs.[30]
- Ukraine has recently started using the Road UA typeface, as part of a signage redesign.[31]
- Turkmenistan may also use the FHWA typeface as well as on road signs in Turkey since road signs in Turkmenistan may sometimes copy the Turkish road sign system.
- Azerbaijan, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Lithuania, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine and Uzbekistan may use the Arial Bold typeface in road signs instead of one specified in a Soviet standard GOST 10807–78, especially in numerals on speed limit road signs, directional, and informatory signs.[5] Also, the Helvetica typeface is sometimes used in road signs.
- Estonia uses the Arial Narrow Bold typeface.[32]
- Latvia uses the DIN 1451 typeface.[33]
In all post-Soviet states, destinations on direction signs are written in capital letters, except for Ukraine's new road sign system, adopted in 2021.
Signs
[edit]Warning signs
[edit]In general, warning signs in post-Soviet states have a triangular shape with a red border and a white background, as in most European countries.
- Latvia uses warning signs with a thicker red triangle.
- Lithuania does not use the Tramway and Tram stop road sign due to the absence of tramways in its territory.
Road works and construction
[edit]- Road works and construction warning signs have a triangular shape with a red border and a white, amber, or yellow background. The Soviet Union formerly only used a white background on road works and construction warning signs. Today, only Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, and Lithuania still use a white background on these warning signs, while Belarus, Estonia, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, and Uzbekistan only use an amber background, and Moldova uses a yellow background, like most temporary warning signs.
In Russia the yellow background was only introduced in 2013. In March 2023 the requirement was dropped for signs on portable stands.
Priority signs
[edit]- Armenia use both ԿԱՆԳ kang and STOP text in stop signs
while most other post-Soviet states only use STOP text in stop signs regardless of the country's official language 
. - Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Estonia, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Lithuania, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine and Uzbekistan use End of priority road sign with 5 thin black diagonal lines
. - Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Lithuania, Russia, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan, use Priority road
and End of priority road signs with a rounded bright orange square and outlines with rounded corners. - Estonia uses Priority road and End of priority road signs with a light yellow right-angle square and a right-angle square outline
. - Moldova and Ukraine use Priority road and End of priority road signs with a light rounded yellow square and outlines with rounded corners
. - Latvia uses a Give way sign with a thick red triangle
, End of priority road sign with three thick black diagonal lines and light yellow square with right angles on it 
. - Almost all post-Soviet states, except for Latvia and Georgia, use a long black arrow down and a short red arrow up on Give way to oncoming traffic signs
, long white arrow up and a red short arrow down on Priority over oncoming traffic signs 
. Latvia has a different look on Give way to oncoming traffic 
and Priority over oncoming traffic signs 
so these signs look closer to the rest of Europe. Georgia also uses the similar arrows like in Latvia on the Give way to oncoming traffic 
and the Priority over oncoming traffic signs 
.
Prohibitory signs
[edit]Most prohibitory signs use a red circle or a red circle with a slash, as in the rest of Europe.
- Latvia uses prohibitory signs with a thick red circle.
In most post-Soviet states, most signs prohibiting certain types of vehicles carry a blanket exemption for local traffic that needs to access a building or property within the sign's area. Exempted vehicles are usually only allowed to enter or leave the area at the nearest intersection. Supplementary plates (detailing specific users that are exempt) are not normally used, unlike most other countries.
For example, in Russia, the "No Vehicles" sign does not apply to mail delivery vehicles, transit vehicles, vehicles serving industries or citizens, vehicles belonging to citizens living or working within the sign's area, or vehicles driven by or carrying disabled persons if the vehicle is displaying a "disabled" badge.[34] This was once reflected in the sign's name, it was originally called "No Through Traffic" in the Soviet traffic regulations.
The traffic regulations of Belarus allow for a plate "with concise wording and an unambiguous interpretation" to be used alongside a sign, with the permission of the traffic police.[35] It used to be common for a No Entry sign to have such a plate below. Nowadays, the "No Vehicles" sign alone is preferred.
Transit vehicles are exempt from No Entry signs if their route passes through them. Some bus lanes in Moscow have a "No Entry" sign above them to reserve them for city buses only.
Mandatory signs
[edit]- Road signs Turn right and Turn left use a 90-degree arrow
or a straight arrow 
to the right and left, respectively. The Soviet Union formerly used a straight arrow to the right and left for Turn right and Turn left signs, respectively. Today, most post-Soviet states, with the exception of Azerbaijan, Lithuania and Turkmenistan only use the 90-degree arrow for Turn Right and Turn Left signs. However, the straight-arrow variant of these road signs may still be used in most post-Soviet states. In accordance with ГОСТ Р 52290-2004 in Russia and in other post-Soviet states, images of the signs Turn right and Turn left have been changed since 2006.[36][37] In Ukraine, since April 2013, images of Turn right and Turn left signs have been modified by replacing straight arrows with 90-degree ones.[38] - Estonia and Latvia use both straight and 90-degree arrows for Turn Right and Turn Left signs.
- Azerbaijan, Lithuania and Turkmenistan continue to use the straight arrow for Turn Right and Turn Left signs, as they did during the Soviet era.
Special regulations signs
[edit]
- In all post-Soviet states, a rectangular road sign with a long white arrow pointing right
or left 
on a blue background designates the exit to a one-way road on road junctions. The arrow on the sign shows the direction of one-way traffic and prohibits movement opposite to the direction of the arrow. Unlike most European countries, rectangular one-way road signs are only placed in front of intersections. At T-junctions, these signs are installed at the exit from a secondary road to the main one-way road, most often in conjunction with a Give way traffic sign or sometimes with a Stop sign, whereas other European countries use Turn right (
and/or 
) or Turn left (
and/or 
) signs at these T-junctions. Additionally, this rectangular road sign can be installed at the X-junctions with a one-way road in conjunction with the Priority road or Give way sign. In the rest of Europe, road signs Go straight or turn right 
, Go straight or turn left 
or No left turn 
, No right turn 
are often installed in front of X-junctions with one-way roads. - Moldova uses a different version of a rectangular one-way road sign with the SENS UNIC text in black inside the arrow
, likewise in Romania 
, but it has a smaller SENS UNIC text compared to the Romanian one.
- Moldova uses a different version of a rectangular one-way road sign with the SENS UNIC text in black inside the arrow
- In post-Soviet states, the sign indicating the end of a one-way road has a crossed-out up arrow inside the square
. However, Lithuania uses a different sign to mark the end of a one-way road, and is only used if a one-way road meets a two-way road at an intersection. The Lithuanian sign has an up arrow on the right and a down arrow on the left 
. Signs marking the end of a one-way road are not found anywhere else in Europe and Asia in this form. - Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Lithuania, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Ukraine use a green background
on the Motorway sign. Lithuania formerly used only green background on the Motorway sign; now it uses both green and blue 
background on the Motorway sign, which makes it the only post-Soviet state to use both green and blue background on the highway sign and at the same time one of the few countries in Europe to use these two background colors on this sign. - Estonia uses a blue background on the Motorway sign as other European countries do, but no roads fall under motorway regulations and it is not used.
- Latvia did not have a Motorway road sign due to the absence of motorways in its territory. However, with the completion of the Ķekava bypass on 23 October 2023, Latvia uses the limited-access road sign
for Motorways, making it the first Motorway in the country. - It was already that:
- Lithuania does not use the Tramway and Tram stop road sign due to the absence of tramways in its territory.
- Lithuania has updated their pedestrian crossing signs, which now look like this:
.
- Most post-Soviet states use the red cross
on Hospital and First aid road signs, while Belarus uses the green cross 
instead, and Tajikistan uses the red crescent 
as well as in other Muslim countries.[5][12][25] From 2002 to 2021, Ukraine formerly used a white cross inside a green square 
on these medicine-related road signs.[39][40]
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Indication signs
[edit]- Kilometer signs
are used to indicate the distance from the place of its installation to the start or end point of the road and are set after 1 km. Such signs usually have from one to four digits. A maximum of 4 digits on kilometer signs are used on highways in Russia and Central Asian countries, whose length exceeds 1000 kilometers, due to the huge area of these countries. In the Baltic States, Belarus, Ukraine, Moldova, Azerbaijan, Armenia and Georgia, a maximum of 3 digits are used on kilometer signs.
Table of traffic signs comparison
[edit]Priority
[edit] |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Soviet Union | Armenia | Azerbaijan | Belarus | Estonia | Georgia | Kazakhstan | Kyrgyzstan | Latvia | Lithuania | [Moldova] | Russia | Tajikistan | Turkmenistan | Ukraine | Uzbekistan | |
| Stop |  |  | | |  |  | | |  | |  | | | |  | |
| Give Way |  | | | |  | | | |  | |  | | | |  | |
| Priority road |  | | | |  | | | |  | |  | | | |  | |
| End of priority road |  | | | |  | | | |  | |  | | | |  | |
| Give way to oncoming traffic |  | | | |  |  | | |  | |  | | | |  | |
| Priority over oncoming traffic |  | | | |  |  | | |  | |  | | | |  | |
| Stop ahead |  |  |  | |  |  | | |  | | | | | |  | |
| Give Way ahead |  |  |  | |  |  | | |  | | | | | |  | |
| Soviet Union | Armenia | Azerbaijan | Belarus | Estonia | Georgia | Kazakhstan | Kyrgyzstan | Latvia | Lithuania | Moldova | Russia | Tajikistan | Turkmenistan | Ukraine | Uzbekistan |
Warning
[edit]| Soviet Union | Armenia | Azerbaijan | Belarus | Estonia | Georgia | Kazakhstan | Kyrgyzstan | Latvia | Lithuania | Moldova | Russia | Tajikistan | Turkmenistan | Ukraine | Uzbekistan | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Curve |  | | | |  | | | |  |  |  | | | |  | |
| Series of curves |  | | | |  | | | |  |  |  | | | |  | |
| Crossroads (with priority to the right) |  | | | |  | | | |  | |  | | | |  | |
| Crossroads (with a minor road) |  | | | |  |  | | |  |  |  | | | |  | |
| Roundabout |  | | | |  | | | |  | .png) |  | | | |  | |
| Traffic signals |  | | | |  | | | |  | |  | | | |  | |
| Two-way traffic |  | | | |  | | | |  | |  | | | |  | |
| Traffic queues |  | |  |  |  | | | |  | |  | | | |  | |
| Steep ascent |  |  | | |  | | | |  | |  | | | | .svg) | |
| Steep descent |  | | | |  | | | |  | |  | | | | .svg) | |
| Soviet Union | Armenia | Azerbaijan | Belarus | Estonia | Georgia | Kazakhstan | Kyrgyzstan | Latvia | Lithuania | Moldova | Russia | Tajikistan | Turkmenistan | Ukraine | Uzbekistan | |
| Pedestrian crossing |  | | | |  | | | |  | .png) |  | | | |  | |
| Pedestrians |  |  |  | |||||||||||||
| Children |  | | | |  | | | |  | |  | | | |  | |
| Cyclists |  | | | |  | | | |  |  |  | | | |  | |
| Domesticated animals |  | | | |  | | | |  | |  | | | |  | |
| Wild animals |  | | | |  | | | |  | |  | | | |  | |
| Road narrows |  | | | |  | | | |  | |  | | | |  | |
| Uneven surface |  | | |  |  | | | |  | |  | | | |  | |
| Bump |  | | |  |  | | | |  |  |  | | | |  | |
| Dip |  |  |  | |  | |||||||||||
| Soviet Union | Armenia | Azerbaijan | Belarus | Estonia | Georgia | Kazakhstan | Kyrgyzstan | Latvia | Lithuania | Moldova | Russia | Tajikistan | Turkmenistan | Ukraine | Uzbekistan | |
| Slippery surface |  | | |  |  | | | |  | |  | | | |  | |
| End of paved surface |  |  |  |  | ||||||||||||
| Loose surface material |  | | |  |  | | | |  | |  | | | |  | |
| Soft or low verges |  | | |  |  | | | |  |  |  | | | |  | |
| Falling rocks |  | | | |  | | | |  | |  | | | |  | |
| Crosswinds |  | | | |  | | | |  | |  | | | |  | |
| Unprotected body of water |  | | | |  | | | |  | |  | | | |  | |
| Opening bridge |  | | | | | | |  | |  | | | |  | | |
| Tunnel |  | | | | | | |  | | | |  | | |||
| Low-flying aircraft |  | | | |  | | | |  |  |  | | | |  | |
| Soviet Union | Armenia | Azerbaijan | Belarus | Estonia | Georgia | Kazakhstan | Kyrgyzstan | Latvia | Lithuania | Moldova | Russia | Tajikistan | Turkmenistan | Ukraine | Uzbekistan | |
| Accident |  |  |  |   | ||||||||||||
| Blind spot |  |   |  |  |  |  | ||||||||||
| Trams |  | | | |  | | | |  |  | | | |  | | |
| Level crossing with barriers ahead |  | | | |  |  | | |  | |  | | | |  | |
| Level crossing without barriers ahead |  | | | |  | | | |  | |  | | | |  | |
| Level crossing (single track) |  | | | |  | | | |  | |  | | | |  | |
| Level crossing (multiple tracks) |  | | | |  | | | |  | |  | | | |  | |
| Roadworks |  | | |  |  | | | |  | |  | | | |  | |
| Other danger |  | | | | | | | |  | |  | | | | | |
| Soviet Union | Armenia | Azerbaijan | Belarus | Estonia | Georgia | Kazakhstan | Kyrgyzstan | Latvia | Lithuania | Moldova | Russia | Tajikistan | Turkmenistan | Ukraine | Uzbekistan |
Note: in most post-Soviet states, crossroads warning signs, including those in Russia and the CIS countries, are classified as priority signs, despite the fact that these signs have a shape typical of warning signs in European countries.
