Zombie Zone ahead!

One man's fun is another man's Very Serious Business.

This is true when it comes to messing with electronic road signs.

Highway departments set up small electronic signboards on wheels to alert motorists to temporary conditions such as "LANE CLOSED AHEAD" or "UNEVEN PAVEMENT."

Along the North Dallas corridor and suburbs it would not be inappropriate to see "TRAFFIC SLOW AHEAD" on LBJ freeway. But that would require a permanent sign.

Traffic officials in Illinois were not amused when one of their signs set up to warn drivers about road crews replacing guardrails ahead suddenly began blurting, "DAILY LANE CLOSURES DUE TO ZOMBIES."

In Indiana, commuters were unexpectedly warned "RAPTORS AHEAD -- CAUTION."

And Austin, Texas, got its own sample of sign hacking with "NAZI ZOMBIES! RUN!!!"

That's right, hacking. According to an AP article, computer hackers are behind the three-state rash of message manipulations. The problem is that nobody knows for sure how they're doing it.

In Illinios they suspect the signs are being changed remotely. Austin officials suspect their hackers cut a padlock to get at the signs' computers.

Officials are concerned that silly signs like these could distract drivers from the real dangers of road work going on just down the road.

"We understood it was a hoax, but at the same time those boards are there for a reason," said Joe Gasaway, of the Illinois Department of Transportation.

So far there have been no reports of some Texas libertarian hacker distracting mainstream Republicans and Democrats by lighting up a sign with the message, "RON PAUL RULES!!!

Sign tampering in Texas gets you a $500 fine. It's $5,000 in Indiana.