Devonshire seaside resort of Dawlish ridiculed for hundreds of bizarre ‘unfriendly’ signs
Visitors to the town have been left shocked by the ''big brother' atmosphere' created by the 'dozens and dozens' of signs
A SEASIDE resort has been ridiculed for having more signposts than any other UK town.
Dawlish in Devon is packed with notices about dog control, seagulls, cycling and car engines.
They include passive-aggressive notices ordering pets to be picked up, bans on duck feeding as well as warnings on bike lanes, rubbish and swans.
It is feared the constant rules and regulations could turn fun-loving tourists away.
A TripAdvisor critic called SW fumed: "There are less signs to be found at a top secret military base.
"Absolutely everywhere I looked there was a sign telling me to comply in one way or another. There are literally dozens and dozens of them - everywhere.
"In over 60 years I have never visited anywhere that appears so overly dominated by what I can only assume to be the ruling local councillors whom I imagine to be hen-pecked do-gooders of independent means with zero understanding of human behaviour or even basic visual perspective.
"Whoever it is they do your town a great disservice if they continue creating a 'big brother' atmosphere.
“Friendly was not how I would describe Dawlish at all because from the moment I stepped from my parked car I was bombarded with notices telling me to do this and not do that.
"I am sure Dawlish must be a lovely place underneath all the vinyl and tinplate signage so how about rationalising all these signs very soon so your next season of visitors can actually see the town for its true worth and not just feel pushed away by all the rules and regulations on show?"
The review is being taken so seriously it has been suggested the signage issues could be discussed by the town's Chamber of Trade.
Now over 30 people have joined the online row - many agreeing with him.
Online user MazzardFarm commented: "Great post SW. Posters may well be right in that these signs are a 'response to' poor behaviour by visitors to the town, it is an illusion to think that people 'like that' will respond to signs.
"Yet everybody else reads them and may well, like you, feel less than welcome.”
Town councillors said the number of signs was constantly looked at.
But ex-mayor Cllr Howard Almond, 72, said: “Some things are necessary.”
"I can see where he is coming from, but we do have a problem with people visiting and feeding the wrong food to the ducks."
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