4 WAYS TO INCREASE A BARRICADE’S VISIBILITY
Barricades make for excellent crowd and traffic control, whether we’re talking about steel fence barriers or folding traffic barricades. Different barricades serve different purposes, from physically blocking off an area to marking a hazard or work zone, but they all mostly have something in common: they need to be seen.
Many barricades are primarily visual barriers. They may physically block access, but a determined individual or vehicle isn’t going to necessarily be deterred by some metal or plastic. The main idea is for a barricade to call out “Hey! This is a place you either shouldn’t be, or need to be careful around.”
So visibility is paramount. Thankfully, there are many options for those who wish to make their crowd and traffic control barriers pop. Let’s check them out now.
COLOR
One simple way to make a barricade easily seen is coloration. Depending on the material your barricade is made from, this is determined by molding the barricade in a particular hue (for plastics) or using a powder-coating process to coat the barrier in colored paint (for metals).
Plastic traffic barricades are usually molded in white as the standard, but depending on the style there may be many other highly visible options available, such as orange, yellow or red.
For an interlocking fence style barrier, you may want to consider utilizing two different colors of barricade, and alternating them. The contrasting pattern is something that can be very easily picked up on visually, so no one will miss your barrier.
REFLECTIVE SHEETING
Another common way to bring visibility to a barricade is by using reflective sheeting. This is usually applied using an adhesive shiny tape (often made by 3M) that will reflect when hit by headlights or other light sources, allowing the barricade to be spotted at night time or in inclement weather situations where natural light may be scarce.
These reflective sheets can be used on all manner of barriers, from traffic barricades to metal and plastic fence barriers, and typically features an alternating diagonal pattern with an orange and white coloration. The orange/white contrast is easy to spot, and the diagonal pattern aesthetically is known to hold interest longer than straight lines, so it ensures the barriers will be highly visible even if the sheets aren’t reflecting at the time
BARRICADE LIGHTS
Of course, when you really want something to stand out, very few things will beat putting a big ol’ bright light on it. Many traffic barricades feature built-in ports that will receive barricade lights. These lights are often solar powered and long lasting, and many can be set to flash on and off, or emit steady light. Many options also feature sensors that ensure they only turn on when ambient light is low, such as at night or during a storm. Several options are waterproof as well.
CUSTOM LETTERING
Sometimes, all the bright colors, shiny reflective sheeting and flashing lights aren’t enough to get the message across. In such cases, there’s still one way to spell your intended message: literally spell it out. Our steel barricades have signage areas where instructions, directions or warnings can be affixed, and there are often broad flat areas on plastic fence barricades that will accommodate a stenciled message.
Traffic safety barricades can also feature a custom stenciled message on their sheeting panels upon request. This is a foolproof way to make your message absolutely clear.
At this point, if lights, colors, reflective shine and clear instructions can’t dissuade someone from going where they shouldn’t, it’s safe to say they’ve made their peace with whatever hazard may befall them.