I saw the sign below while driving from Bloomington, IL to my home near Kansas City. It is at a rest stop on I-55 somewhere in southern Illinois. There are actually two of these in the exact same condition. Usually, there would be a phone or a panic button. I have seen them before in parking lots, and they strike me as a great idea--if there are operational.
In theory, if you had an emergency you could run up to this pole to call for help. That would signal the nearest law enforcement officer, as well as set off a flashing light that may scare off potentially threatening people.
I can just imagine someone being chased and running for this pole hoping to be saved by it. When they get there, they find out that they are out of hope.
It is 2007. We have the technology to implement this idea and fix it if it breaks. If Illinois can go to the expense of making a proper "Out Of Order" sign and mounting it securely on the pole, why can't they just fix it? Or, if there is another solution on the premises that I did not notice, why not remove this one? Another good idea gone bad.
