What Does It Mean When You See A Road Sign With A Thumbs Up On It?

There you are, trucking down the road doing your best to remember the lyrics to your favorite song when you see a sign — one of the many across the U.S. that at times can be confusing — with what looks like the now all-too-familiar thumbs-up emoji. But this one also has a red circle with a line through it, indicating it's not allowed. 

According to the Federal Highway Administration's Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD), these are referred to as "regulatory signs." According to the manual, this thumbs-up image is actually a "No Hitchhiking" sign. It's used to keep people from standing in or near the road for the explicit purpose of what the manual calls "soliciting a ride." It's officially referred to as R9-4a in the MUTCD and can be swapped out for one without the image, which simply reads "No Hitchhiking." The MUTCD designates this text one as an R9-4 word message sign.

Hitchhiking has likely been around as long as there have been carts, wagons, and roads. In the U.S., it became a much bigger deal during the Great Depression, when millions lost their jobs, couldn't find work locally, and had to hitch a ride to wherever they could find gainful employment. According to History.com, it was actually considered a patriotic duty during World War II to give wayward soldiers a ride. 

Hitchhikers could just be adventurous souls boot scooting across the country. But they could also be escaped convicts trying to avoid the long arm of the law. (In fact, there are signs specifically warning against this in Texas.) The point is, you just don't know, and picking up the wrong person can lead to an unhappy ending. Hitchhiking is actually federally illegal in all high-speed zones like highways or interstates (including ramps and medians) for obvious safety reasons. However, there isn't a comprehensive federal law that addresses the legality of hitchhiking on other roads. Instead, various states have their own regulations.

For example, California Vehicle Code §21957 prohibits someone from "requesting a ride" while on any paved portion of the road. Florida Statute 316.130 (5) is worded very similarly. Nevada laws, on the other hand, are tricky and have some lawyers so perplexed that they advise against hitchhiking there. If you do plan to hitch a ride somewhere, always be sure to check local laws.