"Last year the government spent less on the ministry of silly walks than it did on national defense."
"And now for something completely different: A Monty Python-inspired crosswalk in the middle of an East Texas town."
That's the lede from an article by Michael Merschel, who reports on the crosswalk located at main and Gilmer streets in Sulphur Springs. Texas.
The joke: "A pair of traffic signs featuring the silhouette of a slouching, high-stepping, bowler-wearing John Cleese figure doing a silly walk."
As Monty Python proved unequivocally, silly walks are funny, and the decision to add the signs to the crosswalks in Sulphur Springs is all in good fun. Merschel reports that Shane Shepard, former Sulphur Springs community development director, was inspired by a similar sign in Ørje, Norway.
The Silly Walks sign is not the only whimsical element to be found in Downtown Sulphur Springs, as detailed in the article.
FULL STORY: What's this Monty Python sign doing in the middle of Sulphur Springs, Texas?
Friday Funny: Crossing the Street? Good Luck!
The Onion says the quiet part out loud to illustrate the real philosophy behind many road safety strategies.
San Francisco Implements ‘Daylighting’ at Intersections
Vehicles are prohibited from parking within 20 feet of a crosswalk as part of the city’s Vision Zero efforts to eliminate traffic deaths and make roads safer.
Friday Funny: Squirrelly Passenger Causes UK Train Cancellation
Planetizen’s Friday Funny stories are often satirical, but this nutty story from Reuters is 100 percent genuine.
Alabama: Trump Terminates Settlements for Black Communities Harmed By Raw Sewage
Trump deemed the landmark civil rights agreement “illegal DEI and environmental justice policy.”
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
The 120 Year Old Tiny Home Villages That Sheltered San Francisco’s Earthquake Refugees
More than a century ago, San Francisco mobilized to house thousands of residents displaced by the 1906 earthquake. Could their strategy offer a model for the present?
Ken Jennings Launches Transit Web Series
The Jeopardy champ wants you to ride public transit.
BLM To Rescind Public Lands Rule
The change will downgrade conservation, once again putting federal land at risk for mining and other extractive uses.
Indy Neighborhood Group Builds Temporary Multi-Use Path
Community members, aided in part by funding from the city, repurposed a vehicle lane to create a protected bike and pedestrian path for the summer season.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
Clanton & Associates, Inc.
Jessamine County Fiscal Court
Institute for Housing and Urban Development Studies (IHS)
City of Grandview
Harvard GSD Executive Education
Toledo-Lucas County Plan Commissions
Salt Lake City
NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service