Exit signs on interstates

[1995hoo]

In a way, non-reduced tenths make a lot of sense because odometers measure in tenths (if they show portions of a mile). I'd find a sign saying x/10 a lot more useful than a sign using eighths of a mile, fifths of a mile, or feet.

Good point.  I never considered the tenths counter on odometers.  Probably because the only tenths counter I have in my car are on the trip odometers.

It's also perhaps an extra mental step to take since we insist on continuing to use fractions instead of decimals when the idea is archaic in most of the rest of the world. "4/10 mile" is more useful than "2/5 mile", but "0.4 miles" would be even more intuitive to relate to an odometer.

To your average international visitor, saying "two fifths" instead of "zero point four" sounds about as old fashioned as saying "quarter past six" instead of "six fifteen" sounds to us.

You don't say "forty-five to seven"?