Highway Sign Takes Strong Anti-Ketchup Stance During Peak Hot Dog Season

To ketchup or not to ketchup: that may be the question, but this highway sign has a definitive answer for all drivers passing underneath its bold proclamation.

“No texting. No speeding. No ketchup,” the sign insists.

With the image now circulating on Twitter, the photographer of this particular viral moment insists it was not Photoshopped. Instead, the powers that be at the Illinois Department of Transportation must have either a sense of humor or, more likely, a strong conviction about the appropriate use of tomato-based condiments. (Hint: don’t use them.) It may be peak hot dog season, but looks like these architects of our driving experience are firmly in the mustard-and-relish-only camp. Since the sign popped up on an interstate in the Chicago area, that makes sense: regional preference is definitely anti-ketchup, according to comments.

And to those worried that the funny addendum to the first two rules may be causing more trouble than it’s worth — after all, the sign is trying to get drivers to stop using their phones during their commutes, not use them more — the photographer in question reassured commenters that he was in the passenger seat.

While some are fully on board with the anti-ketchup sentiment, others are ready to carry on driving far away from a place with that kind of animosity towards their beloved Heinz.