The Enthusiasm Paradox

Mike Sullivan - President - Utility Safety Partners

The damage prevention industry’s enthusiasm is, without question, extremely high. But – and I know I’m going to get bad press from this – I think it’s also one of its greatest downfalls and leads to the "enthusiasm paradox" – a situation where excessive enthusiasm leads to unintended negative consequences.

We are always looking for the next best thing in terms of a how to promote awareness – and that is a very good thing. But we also tend to get caught up creating multiple calls-to-action to do so. And that is where I believe things get confusing.

I was once asked to deliver a 5-minute TED Talk on “Promoting Awareness” and delivered my “STOP Sign” analogy. To my surprise, the late Rex Murphy was in the audience and when the session was over, he came over, shook my hand, and said, “You were the only person who met the criteria with that talk.” I was stunned but maybe after delivering countless presentations over my career, that’s why this one stuck with me.

Basically, what I said in that TED Talk was, "If a STOP sign varied in colour and shape across different jurisdictions, significant chaos and unnecessary safety hazards would follow."

A STOP sign that differs in each city or region would force drivers to constantly re-learn traffic rules, leading to uncertainty and hesitation at intersections. Tourists and out-of-town drivers would struggle to identify STOP signs, increasing the risk of accidents. If a driver does not immediately recognize a STOP sign due to its unfamiliar color or shape, they may fail to stop in time. Pedestrians and cyclists, who assume drivers will obey traffic signals, would be placed in greater danger. Varying STOP sign designs could lead to inconsistent stopping patterns, road rage, and misinterpretation of right-of-way rules. Automated systems, like self-driving cars and traffic cameras that rely on standardized signs for navigation and enforcement would be completely unreliable.

Standardization Matters

STOP signs are universally red and octagonal to create instant recognition and minimize risk. A world where STOP signs come in various colors and shapes would introduce unnecessary hazards and confusion, making roads far less safe for everyone.

Using the chaos that varying STOP signs would create, why do we do that with damage prevention awareness? We have so many variations of informing the public of the damage prevention process. We tell them to Call Before You Dig, ClickBeforeYouDig, Dig Safe, Know What’s Below, Respect the Marks, and Dig with Care using multiple branding, logos, symbols and colours – and then we wonder why our target audiences don’t do what we ask. It’s because we’re confusing them! There are too many messages!

It's time we adopt the STOP sign standardization rule and rely on a universally recognized symbol or command that initiates the desired action.

In Canada, and as it should be elsewhere, the likelihood of damaging a buried utility is lowest when a person submits a locate request online; ie: ClickBeforeYouDig. We know this. We need to get out of our own way and impose it everywhere.