Standard Highway Signs: Standard Alphabets (Series B-F and E-Modified)
The pattern
This still is filed under Headline · visual lockup.
Define
Headline and picture are one sentence. Remove either half and the claim disappears.
Mechanism
Lockup. The line names what the image will not. The image shows what the line cannot. They are not redundant.
Verdict
We have a picture that completes a short line: wit, contrast, or a second meaning.
Why it works
The design directs attention to the message.
Steal this when
When you need a clean layout. *Collection note: The FHWA Series letterforms drawn on a grid with stroke widths and spacing tables - the public-domain type specimen behind American road signage* ---