Australia Puts Trivia Signs on Long, Boring Roads to Keep Drivers Awake

If you've ever driven across the Australian outback, you know the roads can be brutally monotonous — dead straight for hundreds of kilometres, with nothing but dry scrubland and the occasional kangaroo for company. It's the kind of driving that lulls you into a dangerous trance. So Australian authorities came up with a surprisingly creative solution: trivia signs.

The Fatigue Zone

In Queensland, the Transport and Main Roads department has been installing what it calls "Fatigue Zone" signage since 2012. The concept is simple: one sign poses a trivia question — something like "What is the largest living thing on Earth?" — and a few kilometres down the road, another sign reveals the answer.

The idea is to keep your brain active when the scenery won't do the job. The questions are printed on removable aluminium panels, so they can be swapped out to keep repeat travellers guessing.

The Longest Straight Road in the World

The signs are also found in Western Australia, along the Eyre Highway between Balladonia and Caiguna. This stretch runs 146.6 kilometres (91 miles) in a nearly perfect straight line — one of the longest straight road segments on Earth. The entire area is designated as a Fatigue Zone, and the trivia signs are one of the few things that break up the hypnotic monotony.

A Simple Idea That Works

Driver fatigue is one of Australia's biggest road safety challenges. Long-distance driving across remote highways is simply a fact of life in a country this vast. While most road safety measures focus on warnings — "Drowsy? Pull over" — the trivia signs take the opposite approach. Instead of telling drivers they're tired, they give them something to think about.

The signs can also spark conversation between driver and passengers, adding another layer of mental engagement. It's a low-cost, low-tech intervention that turns boredom itself into the solution.