With the lifting of most COVID restrictions, people are eager to get out and enjoy all that summer has to offer. The array of outdoor fairs, flea markets, parades, sporting events, and concerts, coupled with employees returning to the workplace, is resulting in more traffic – both vehicular and pedestrian – than we’ve seen in a very long time.

The worldwide impact of the COVID-19 pandemic has been unprecedented. Here at home, restrictions are slowly being lifted and people are resuming everyday activities after nearly three months of lockdown.

In order to support our customers during this difficult time, Traffic Safety Direct pivoted to provide essential safety and social distancing-related products ranging from protective face masks to custom signs. As cities, businesses, and organizations reopen or prepare to restart, we are continuing to address their need to create and maintain safe environments for their customers, residents, and workers – both indoors and out.

At the start of 2020, many of us had never heard of social distancing and no one could have imagined that it would become an essential part of our daily lives. However, the COVID-19 pandemic has made it a priority for people across the country and around the world, and we think about keeping a safe distance from others each time we step out the front door – whether we are stocking up on groceries or taking a walk in the park with our family.

We are seeing increased demand for traffic cones and delineator posts, barricades, and various types of signage from hospitals as well as local organizations involved in setting up and managing coronavirus testing sites. Businesses and municipalities that have had to adjust their hours or limit car and pedestrian access to buildings, schools, parking lots, and parks because of social distancing restrictions are also in need of signs and safety products.

Visible signs indicating detours are a vital tool for preventing accidents and injury, not only for drivers, but for students, faculty, employees, visitors, and construction crews. Learn how to keep compliant.

Orange traffic cones are a familiar sight on highways and city streets across the country. While it’s impossible to know the exact number, by some estimates there are roughly 140 million traffic cones in use worldwide.

They divide lanes in construction zones, provide direction around short-duration road maintenance and utility work, and warn drivers of unseen hazards such as potholes and raised manhole covers. They are also seen in parking lots, on athletic fields, and even indoors in areas where extra caution is needed.

Traffic cones are designed to be highly visible and easily movable. They come in various sizes and many different colors, with orange, yellow, and red being the most popular choices due to their brightness. Some versions can be topped with signs or connected with bars or chains.

Planning large-scale events can be quite a challenge. Organizers must manage an endless list of responsibilities and details to ensure that everything goes smoothly, from permitting, concessions and entertainment to recruiting volunteers, parking and attendee safety. The larger the event, the more important it is to ensure that crowd control measures are in place. The easier it is for pedestrians and vehicles to navigate in and out of the event, the less likely accidents are to occur.

Counties and municipalities are often responsible for ensuring public safety at the many parades, festivals and other activities that take place in their communities. When events impact driver and/or pedestrian traffic routes, maps should be created that clearly delineate street closures and detours, and local businesses and residents need to be notified of any street closures affecting them well in advance.

A wide variety of crowd control and traffic safety products are available to help ensure that events are safe and enjoyable for all involved. Traffic barricades can be used to define boundaries, restrict access to specific areas and make street closures obvious for visitors on foot and in vehicles, making them a vital part of any plan to keep event participants safe.

College campuses across the country come alive in the spring. The warm weather brings students and faculty outdoors, while end-of-the-school-year activities attract large numbers of families and visitors. With the resulting increase in walking and biking as well as vehicular traffic, the risks for campus roadway users are perhaps greater than at any other time of year. Since pedestrians and bicyclists are particularly vulnerable to traffic injuries, improving their safety is a high priority for facilities managers at colleges and universities both large and small.

College and university campuses are bustling environments filled with students, faculty and visitors on the move. Travel safety on campus is always a top concern for school administrators, and with the number of end-of-semester activities, athletic events and graduations taking place this time of year, it is especially important for pedestrians, bicyclists and drivers to do their part to help reduce risks.

There is much that can be done to improve the safety of pedestrians. This is a worldwide issue. Speed contributes to around one-third of all fatal road traffic crashes in high income countries, and up to half in low and middle-income countries.

As a world-wide effort, the United Nations (UN) in collaboration with the World Health Organization (WHO) developed the UN Road Safety Collaboration. This collaboration set out in 2011 to achieve the goal of saving 5 million lives through Road Safety during the period of 2011 to 2020.