A man was left perplexed after he woke up to find mysterious symbols spray-painted on the pavement outside his home – with some people sharing their concerns about it being a ‘burglars’ code’.
Glancing around your local area, you’ve perhaps noticed the occasional mysterious symbols tagged on the pavement; these intriguing markings tend to go unnoticed upon by most passersby.
However, they’ve sparked curiosity among others, culminating in one Reddit user posing the question: “What are these symbols on the pavement? Woke up to find these outside. Neighbour said they were made by a man in a high-vis jacket. Any ideas?”
Many replied with guesses as to their meanings, while concerns grew about a potential ‘burglars’ code’. On social media people suggested these cryptic signs might be secret communications amongst criminals.
The theories suggested five dots could mean the occupants of a home were wealthy, or a large X or cross meant it was a good target. Nonetheless, the police promptly debunked these rumours and called out the so-called “Da Pinchi Code”.
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What are these symbols on the pavement?
byu/Complete-Time4681 inDIYUK
The South Worcestershire Police even released an explainer diagram of the true meaning behind these road markings, assuring the public that “There is no actual evidence to link these symbols to anything other than completely innocent and easily explainable activities.”
Despite this, a Redditor posted an image suggesting the ‘real’ meaning behind the different road markings, commenting: “According to this, there’s either nothing worth stealing, or you’re getting some new street lights.”
With a dash of humour, another participant quipped: “I’d like a streetlight over my driveway so I’ve just marked the spawn point. Wish me luck.”
Others came up with their own jokes about what it could mean, with one saying: “Landing pad for a very small xenomorph spaceship.”
One more user added: “Drone landing zone for when they are spying on your rattan garden furniture from Aldi.”
What are these symbols on the pavement?
byu/Complete-Time4681 inDIYUK
However, it turns out that these colour codes actually signify something quite mundane. Red is a marker for electric wiring, blue indicates water pipes, and yellow signifies gas, oil, or steam lines.
White, on the other hand, denotes a proposed excavation site or route, and is also used by workers to communicate and mark where installations should be placed.
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What common symbols like lines and numbers mean:
- Straight lines are one of the most common markings you’re likely to see on the road or pavement. They show where pipes and cables are and the different colours mean different lines from water to gas or broadband.
- Numbers can mean anything from pressure to depth or how high the pavement should be after road works.
- Workers will often write out messages in spray paint but they also use abbreviations like L/P for low pressure or BT for the utility company.
- The letter R means the position of the pipes or cables has been verified by radar.
- A P means the positions are based on checks by passive electromagnetics.
- A group of circles indicates the number of cables within a duct below.
- This white squiggle above a line shows where roadworks start or end.
- Zig-zags indicate where a zebra crossing needs to be painted on the road.
- Hatched markings show where something like a box junction should be painted.
- Overlapping boxes means a cover or manhole is going to be moved.
- A circle with a cross in the middle shows where a lamppost will be placed.
- Two triangles show where a drop kerb will be fitted.
- An open box with circles inside shows where TV wire are running under the pavement, with the number of circles indicating the number of cables.
- A lock symbol means a manhole needs to be sealed.
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Sourse: www.express.co.uk
