Mississippi humor coming to a highway sign near you next month

Published 10:23 am Sunday, July 5, 2020

Starting in early August, people driving on Mississippi’s interstates will see new, quirky slogans appearing on digital message signs.

The Mississippi Department of Transportation tasked residents in May with coming up with creative notices focused on safety to display on state highways. After reviewing more than 500 entries, the Department of Transportation has selected five finalists, the department announced Friday.

“MDOT received so many clever entries throughout this contest, and we are so grateful for everyone’s participation,” Melinda McGrath, the department’s executive director, said in a news release.

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The winning message comes from Tommye Henderson, of Clinton, Mississippi:

ZOOM IS FOR

ONLINE MEETINGS

NOT HIGHWAY DRIVING

Other notable entries were Jim Miller’s from Madison:

THE HOSPITALITY STATE

WILL GREET SPEEDERS

WITH A WELCOME TICKET

Maggie King, of Canton, wrote:

DRIVE BOOZY

AND YOUR TICKET

COULD BE A DOOZY

MDOT’s traffic safety messages, which are often related to current events and pop culture, are part of an effort to encourage drivers to change their actions behind the wheel, officials said. More than 90% of vehicle crashes are caused by driver decisions, such as speeding, driving aggressively, distracted or impaired, the transportation department said.