Unlike Ecuador, which mainly has coverage of major roads and cities, Colombian coverage also incorporates minor roads. As a result, you will often see dirt roads in Colombian coverage whilst these are rather rare in Ecuador. Colombia stands out as it has yellow license plates, something that is unique in South America. Colombia can also be easily determined as its commercial vehicles (eg taxis and trucks) have the license plates on their sides (as do Peru and Bolivia. Ecuador can have blurring on the sides of these vehicles but it isn’t a license plate or location that is blurred). Colombian side license plates are regularly not blurred and list the area of Colombia they are from e.g. a city such as Bogota. Colombia has a mountainous landscape with dirt roads being a common feature as the Colombian coverage includes many minor roads, unlike Ecuador. Colombia can also be easy to recognise thanks to their surplus of yellow and black striped poles. The country is so religious they have crosses on the backs of their signs. This is rare in the rest of the world. Colombia also have very narrow, white poles holding up many of their signs. If you pan down in Colombia, you should see a stubby aerial. Within Latin America, Ecuador, Brazil and Mexico may also have this stubby aerial. Colombia recently got a small amount of generation 4 coverage.  License plates in Colombia are typically yellow in colour for both the front and rear plate. Out of South America, this is endemic to Colombia. Seeing yellow license plates is the easiest way to identify Colombia. The Colombian landscape is very green and tropical with thick foliage common. Much of Colombia has a hilly or mountainous landscape. Many of the Colombian roads are dirt. The northern section of Colombia is flat and dry looking. Colombia often has colourful houses with corrugated iron roofs. In Colombia, you will typically see the short, stubby aerial of the Street View car if you pan down. Sometimes the aerial will be there but not visible in that moment. In this scenario you normally will need to move a few metres to make it appear. In Latin America, the short, stubby aerial is most common in Colombia and Ecuador but is can also be seen in Brazil and Mexico on occasions. This antenna in the four Latin American countries stands out for having a single diagonal string like protrusion wrapping around it. Countries with a stubby antenna outside of Latin America have a different looking stubby antenna without the single diagonal string like protrusion. Within Colombia, these rudimentary fences are a common sight (especially in rural Colombia). They consist of misshapen wooden branches placed at intervals and connected by some wire. They are rarely seen outside of Colombia. On a number of occasions, I have been placed in a remote part of Colombia with few clues and these fences have helped me determine that I am indeed in Colombia. Colombia has a large number of yellow and black striped poles. These black and yellow stripes extend to Colombian traffic lights. Colombia have crosses on the backs of their signs. This is an easy way to distinguish the country from the others in South America, including Ecuador. Signs in Colombia are held up by what are almost comically narrow poles that are painted white. Colombian commercial vehicles such as taxis and trucks, have license plates on their side. These are sometimes blurred. If they aren’t blurred, you will be able to read the name of the city or area. In the image above, the plate says ‘Bogota’. Colombian taxis also have the city name on their roof. Peru and Bolivia have similar side license plates on commercial vehicles. Ecuador can have blurred sides on their taxis however these blurred areas on Ecuadorian taxis don’t cover license plates or city names. These ‘Philippine-style’ roads comprising large, concrete rectangular blocks can be found in Colombia. 

Colombian licence plates are typically yellow.

Within South America, yellow licence plates are almost exclusively found in Colombia.

Signposts in Colombia are made of white metal, and join to form a distinct cross on the back of signs.

White metal signposts can also be found in Brazil, however these are usually wider.

Colombia uses two types of kilometre markers: a tall green version with the letters “Pr” at the top, and the traditional stone marker with black lettering. Both designs are unique to the country.

The first two digits at the bottom indicate the road number. In this case, the road number is 90. The last two digits indicate the section of the road, which increase west to east on even numbered highways, and south to north on uneven numbered highways.

You can use this resource to help identify each section.

Colombian poles are often marked with unique black-and-yellow or black-and-orange stripes.

Wooden fences are particularly common in Colombia.

In addition to the unpainted variants, some fence posts are painted and sharp at the top. These are almost exclusive to Colombia.

Colombian taxis are always this pastel yellow colour. As opposed to private vehicles, they have white licence plates, which are often printed on the side and roof. If unblurred, you will often see the city name.

Ecuadorian taxis may look similar. However, they use a slightly more saturated yellow and typically have orange plates.

Colombian poles are generally concrete with a variety of pole tops.

Moreover, dark-coloured poles are more common in Colombia than in neighbouring countries.

It is the only country in the Americas, apart from Mexico and Ecuador, where octagonal poles can be found.

In Colombia, it is particularly common for sidewalks to be decorated with reddish tiles.

Road Lines:

Like most of the Western Hemisphere, the shoulder lines are white while the center divider is yellow.

Road Signs:

Colombia has several unique sign features. All sign posts are white and slim compared to other countries. Speed signs are round with a red outside and white inside (like Brazil). However all these signs also have a unique grey cross on the back of them.

License Plates:

License plates in Colombia are yellow and have the municipality name at the bottom.

Taxis and trucks in Colombia have a white side plate on them which is sometimes unblurred, giving away the region/city name.

