"Baby on board" is a caution sign to alert others either to the possible presence of a baby inside a vehicle, or to a woman's pregnancy.

Inside a vehicle

It can be the message of a small (usually ) sign intended to be placed in the back window of an

automobile A car, or an automobile, is a motor vehicle with wheels. Most definitions of cars state that they run primarily on roads, Car seat, seat one to eight people, have four wheels, and mainly transport private transport#Personal transport, peopl ...

to caution other drivers that an infant is travelling in the automobile. The sign may also be intended as a warning to emergency personnel, in case of emergency, that there may be a baby in the vehicle. However, this is not the intended purpose as stated by the company Safety 1st, which marketed the product at the time of its peak popularity. A version of the sign was found in Germany by Patricia Bradley of

Medford, Massachusetts Medford is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. At the time of the 2020 United States census, Medford's population was 59,659. It is home to Tufts University, which has its campus on both sides of the Medford and Somervill ...

. With her sister Helen she started a company, PHOB, to market them in the US, but had only limited success until partnering with Michael Lerner. Lerner was told about the signs after recounting his experience of aggressive drivers when driving his baby nephew home in busy traffic. An

urban legend Urban legend (sometimes modern legend, urban myth, or simply legend) is a genre of folklore concerning stories about an unusual (usually scary) or humorous event that many people believe to be true but largely are not. These legends can be e ...

claims that the death of a baby led to the creation of the signs, but there is no truth to this claim. Lerner eventually bought PHOB for approximately US$150,000, and changed the name to "Safety 1st". The company later diversified into infant and

child care Child care, also known as day care, is the care and supervision of one or more children, typically ranging from three months to 18 years old. Although most parents spend a significant amount of time caring for their child(ren), childcare typica ...

products and is now part of

Dorel Industries Dorel Industries Inc. is a Canadian company, based in Montreal, Quebec, which designs and manufactures juvenile products and home furnishings. Its Dorel Sports division, sold in 2022, sold bicycles. It was formed in 1987 as a result of a merge ...

. The sign became a ubiquitous

fad A fad, trend, or craze is any form of collective behavior that develops within a culture, a generation, or social group in which a group of people enthusiastically follow an impulse for a short time period. Fads are objects or behaviors tha ...

, flourishing in 1985. Its use in the US rapidly declined in 1986 as parody imitations with lines like "Baby I'm Bored", "Pit Bull on board", and "Mother-In-Law in Trunk" became popular, although its popularity continues well into the 21st century in the United Kingdom (along with other versions such as "Princess on board" and "Little Person on board"), in Italy, and in Japan (usually saying "Baby in Car", with the sign written in either English or Japanese script). Despite waning in popularity, the signs have entered the American lexicon. In 1993, ''

The Simpsons ''The Simpsons'' is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening and developed by Groening, James L. Brooks and Sam Simon for the Fox Broadcasting Company. It is a Satire (film and television), satirical depiction of American life ...

'' episode "

Homer's Barbershop Quartet "Homer's Barbershop Quartet" is the first episode of the fifth season of the American animated television series ''The Simpsons''. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on September 30, 1993. It features the Be Sharps, a ...

" featured a

barbershop quartet A barbershop quartet is a group of four singers who sing music in the barbershop style, characterized by four-part harmony without instrumental accompaniment (a cappella). The four voices are: the lead, the vocal part which typically carries t ...

tune called "Baby on Board". The song was written by

Homer Simpson Homer Jay Simpson is the main protagonist of the American animated television series ''The Simpsons'' who is part of the titular family. Homer made his television debut in the short " Good Night" on '' The Tracey Ullman Show'' on April 19, ...

in a flashback to 1985 when

Marge Marge is a feminine given name, a shortened form of Marjorie, Margot or Margaret. Notable Marges include: People * Marge (cartoonist) (1904–1993), pen name of Marjorie Henderson Buell, American cartoonist * Marge Anderson (1932–2013), Ojibwe ...

bought a sign, hoping it would stop people from "intentionally ramming our car".

Pregnancy alert sign

Following popular request and trials in 2005,

Transport for London Transport for London (TfL) is a local government body responsible for most of the transport network in London, United Kingdom. TfL is the successor organization of the London Passenger Transport Board, which was established in 1933, and His ...

(TfL) began issuing

badge A badge is a device or accessory, often containing the insignia of an organization, which is presented or displayed to indicate some feat of service, a special accomplishment, a symbol of authority granted by taking an oath (e.g., police and fir ...

s displaying the TfL logo and the words "Baby on board!" to pregnant women travelling on the

London Underground The London Underground (also known simply as the Underground or as the Tube) is a rapid transit system serving Greater London and some parts of the adjacent home counties of Buckinghamshire, Essex and Hertfordshire in England. The Undergro ...

, to help other passengers identify pregnant travellers who might like to be offered a seat. TfL supplies free of charge one "Baby on board" badge per person. The effectiveness of this badge is mixed. Today, similar badges are available from retailers, and from many other public transport operators in the UK and the

Republic of Ireland Ireland ( ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 Counties of Ireland, counties of the island of Ireland, with a population of about 5.4 million. ...

Inside a vehicle

Pregnancy alert sign

References

Further reading