The Rolling Stop at a Four-Way With a Stalled Truck
You approach a four-way stop on a two-lane road in suburban Mesa at 4:40 p.m. A box truck is stopped in the eastbound lane facing you, its left turn signal clicking. Behind it, three cars are queued. You are westbound, planning to continue straight. A cyclist is riding eastbound in the bike lane on your left side of the intersection, and a pedestrian with a stroller waits on the northwest corner. The truck's driver waves you through with a hand gesture, but the truck has not moved and its signal still flashes left. Sun glare is heavy from the west. You are already rolling at about 5 mph as you reach the limit line.
1. Should you accept the truck driver's wave and proceed? Walk through the decision.
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No. A hand wave is a courtesy, not a right-of-way transfer, and the truck driver cannot yield rights that belong to the cyclist, the pedestrian, or cross traffic.
Key reasoning steps:
- Order of arrival governs. At a four-way stop, the first vehicle to stop proceeds first. The truck stopped before you, so if it intends to turn left it must yield to you only if you are already lawfully at the intersection - but you are still rolling, not stopped.
- Never roll through. At 5 mph you have not completed a stop. Come to a full stop at the limit line, then reassess.
- The wave conflicts with the signal. A left-turn signal plus a wave is ambiguous. The driver may be waving you into a path they intend to occupy.
- Hidden road users. The cyclist traveling eastbound and the pedestrian with a stroller both have claims on the intersection. A wave from a truck cab does not clear your view of them, and glare from the west reduces your ability to see the cyclist.
- Safe resolution. Stop fully, make eye contact, confirm the truck is actually holding, check the bike lane and crosswalk, then proceed only when the path is visibly clear - not because someone gestured.
2. What does the pedestrian with a stroller change about your obligations, and how does glare affect your duty of care?
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The pedestrian on the northwest corner is a vulnerable road user with a claim on the crosswalk in your path if you continue straight. Even before they step off the curb, their presence should lower your approach speed and shift your scan to the crosswalk and corner.
- Crosswalk duty. If the pedestrian enters the crosswalk, you must yield. Anticipate that a person pushing a stroller may move slower and may step out earlier than expected to check traffic.
- Glare is not an excuse. Heavy sun from the west means you may be seeing silhouettes. Arizona law requires you to drive at a speed that lets you stop within the distance you can see ahead. If glare prevents you from confirming the crosswalk is clear, slow further or wait.
- Use the visor and clean windshield. Reduce glare so you can distinguish the pedestrian from the background.
- Combine hazards. Pedestrian plus cyclist plus ambiguous truck equals a high-workload moment. The correct response is to complete the stop and buy time, not to accept the wave and roll.
3. If the truck instead begins its left turn while you are stopped, what must you do?
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Yield and let it complete the turn. Once the truck commits, it occupies the intersection and possibly part of your lane. Your obligation is to avoid a collision, not to enforce right-of-way.
- Right-of-way is yielding, not taking. Even if you believe you had priority, the practical rule is to give way to a vehicle already in the intersection.
- Watch the cyclist. A left-turning truck may cut across the eastbound bike lane. The cyclist could swerve toward your lane, so keep your wheels straight and be ready to stop.
- Do not enter behind the truck. Wait until the intersection and crosswalk are clear, then proceed when you can see the pedestrian and the bike lane are safe.