Time-Qualified No Turn on Red in the Downtown One-Way Grid
At 5:40 p.m. on a weekday you are eastbound on a three-lane one-way street in downtown DC. You need to turn right at the next intersection onto a one-way street that runs north. The signal is steady red. Mounted on the signal mast are two signs: a white rectangular sign reading NO TURN ON RED 7:00 AM-9:30 AM AND 4:00 PM-6:30 PM, and a second sign reading RIGHT TURN FROM RIGHT LANE ONLY. You are in the center lane because the right lane was blocked by a delivery van two blocks back. A pedestrian is approaching the crosswalk from your right but is still about 12 feet from the curb. A cyclist is waiting in a bike lane on the cross street. Traffic on the cross street is light. The driver behind you taps the horn, and the right lane now appears open.
1. At 5:40 p.m., does the time-qualified sign prohibit a right turn on red, and does the light cross-street traffic change that? Explain how you decide.
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Yes. The restriction is active because 5:40 p.m. falls inside the posted 4:00-6:30 p.m. window. The sign is regulatory, not advisory: it removes the default permission to turn right after stopping at a red light. Light traffic on the cross street does not create an exception, and the honking driver behind you does not either. The only lawful ways to make this turn are to wait for a green signal and comply with the lane-use sign, or to follow a police officer's direction. The pedestrian and cyclist still matter even after the light turns green, because a green light gives permission to proceed but does not automatically give you the right of way over them.
2. The signal turns green. You are still in the center lane, the right lane is open, and a cyclist is proceeding straight in the bike lane on the cross street. Describe the sequence you should use to complete the turn legally and safely.
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A green light does not cancel the RIGHT TURN FROM RIGHT LANE ONLY sign. First, change lanes legally into the right lane: check mirrors, signal, check the blind spot, and yield to any vehicle already in that lane. Do not turn from the center lane even if the light is green. Once in the right lane, approach the turn at a low speed, scan for the pedestrian in the crosswalk and for the cyclist in the bike lane, and yield before crossing the bike lane. Turn into the correct lane of the one-way street rather than swinging wide. If traffic prevents a safe lane change before the intersection, continue straight and reroute; a missed turn is safer than an illegal turn from the wrong lane.
3. A police officer standing in the intersection waves you through the red light to make the right turn from the center lane. How do you reconcile the officer's signal with the posted signs, and what do you do?
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A police officer's direction overrides posted signs and traffic signals. If the officer is clearly and specifically directing you to turn, you may proceed even though the sign says NO TURN ON RED and you are not in the right lane. However, the officer's wave is permission, not a guarantee that the path is clear. Proceed slowly, make eye contact, and yield to pedestrians, cyclists, and cross traffic. If the gesture is ambiguous, remain stopped and wait for a clearer signal. The officer's direction applies to your movement at that moment; it does not authorize a careless turn.