COLLEGE STATION, Texas — On average, about 150 street signs are stolen each year in College Station and the problem is getting worse. The number of signs stolen from October through March was about four times the average.
It may seem like a funny prank at first, but CSPD is urging people to think twice before they steal one.
“On one hand, if you don’t have the traffic control devices, like the stop sign, then it can actually cause a crash that results in serious injuries or worse even death,” Tristan Lopez, CSPD Public Information Officer, said, “and you stealing that sign, would actually be contributing to that.”
Officer Lopez said because of the risk for severe injury or death…that’s why the penalty for stealing a street sign is so high.
“You'd be arrested and you'd be charged for a class B misdemeanor,” Officer Lopez said, “Ultimately, you could face up to 6 months in jail and or a $2,000 fine.”
Garrett Martinek, Traffic Systems Manager for College Station’s Public Works Department, said on average signs can cost from 20 to 500 dollars to repair, not including labor costs.
Based on their policy they’ve kept over the years, Martinek said it should take the city 72 hours to replace a sign, but depending on what sign is stolen, there can be exceptions.
“Say you find a missing street sign on a Friday, we’re gonna wait until the following week - but we may wait until Wednesday, Thursday or even the next following week because we end up with the chance of it being taken over the weekend, depending on if there are some special activities going on,” Martinek said.
CSPD says if you see a person tampering with a sign or looks like they are about to steal a sign – call the non-emergency number – 979-746-3600.