An Italian Redditor spotted something strange on the road recently and took to r/whatisthisthing to get some help identifying it.

"Road transport with a large I-beam shape," they wrote alongside a photo. "Looks like fiberglass, has a little door in the back. Doesn't look like cargo, rather it's part of the transporter. Seen in Tuscany."

"It is curved only for legal reasons." — Photo Credit: Reddit

As it turns out, this kind of oddly-shaped truck is apparently used in advertising. In the photo, it's being used to promote a restaurant.

Mobile advertising like this has been spreading like a plague. Advertising trucks have been seen in Maine, shilling ferry rides, in the UK, blinding people at night, and selling internet service in Colorado. This light pollution from LED ads is dangerous on roads, as one study revealed. While the truck pictured on Reddit hosts traditional, non-electronic signage, it still hosts advertising, which drives overconsumption.

Unnecessary purchases are a deciding factor not only in overspending but in manufacturing pollution. The energy and material needs upstream and the waste created downstream both pose heavy environmental costs.

By supporting a circular economy instead, it's possible to save money by giving used items a second life. This can be done via thrifting, repairing the items you own, and donating usable items you're done with. Some services will even reward you for making those donations, including Trashie, ThredUp, and GotSneakers.

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Reddit commenters were certainly annoyed when learning what the oddly-shaped truck was used for, but some had some interesting context to add.

"It's not meant to be mobile, it's meant to be parked in strategic places where there's no billboard or where a fixed structure isn't allowed or the taxes would be too costly," said one community member. "I think they are called sail trucks or posterbus."

"It is curved only for legal reasons. In order to be able to circulate, a 'sailing truck' (camion vela) must not have a shape as to be able to carry anything except billboards," said another. "If the back were parallelepiped, even if it had no doors or access, it would be illegal. Or rather it should be registered as a van and therefore to carry advertising it should pay a tax that a vehicle not suitable for transport does not have to pay."

Should the government be allowed to control how restaurants run their business?

Never 👎