Flashing Yellow Arrow, a NO TURN ON RED Sign, and a Lane That Must Turn Left
At 4:50 p.m. on a weekday you are southbound on a four-lane divided arterial in Newark, Delaware, posted 45 mph, waiting in the left lane of a three-lane approach to a signalized intersection. Above your lane hangs a white rectangular sign with a black left-turn arrow and the word ONLY; a second white sign beside your lane reads LEFT TURN MUST TURN LEFT. On the mast arm over the right lane hangs a white sign reading NO TURN ON RED. Your left-turn signal head displays a flashing yellow arrow. Opposing through traffic is heavy and continuous, and a pedestrian is walking in the crosswalk across the road you want to enter. A pickup is following you closely. The through lanes receive a green ball while your flashing yellow arrow continues. You had intended to drive straight through to a store two blocks beyond the intersection, your passenger asks whether you could have turned right on red from the right lane, and a solid white line already separates your lane from the one to your right.
1. Your passenger asks whether a driver in the right lane could legally turn right on red here. What is the correct answer, and what exactly does the sign change about the normal rule?
Read the worked answer
Delaware follows the general rule that a right turn on red is allowed after a complete stop behind the stop line or crosswalk, provided you yield to pedestrians, cyclists, and cross traffic - unless a sign or signal prohibits it.
The white rectangular sign with black lettering is a regulatory sign. White rectangles are the shape/color combination reserved for rules that carry the force of law, and NO TURN ON RED removes the default permission at this location. There is no time placard under it (some are posted 'when pedestrians are present' or with hours), so here it applies around the clock. The correct answer is therefore: no right turn on red at any time; the driver must wait for a green indication for that lane and then still yield.
Two supporting points matter. First, even if the sign were absent, the pedestrian in the crosswalk would still have the right of way, so the turn would have to wait anyway. Second, a right turn on red must be made from the rightmost lane without swinging wide; turning right on red from a middle lane, or from a lane governed by a red arrow, is never permitted.
2. Explain what the flashing yellow arrow authorizes, and what you must actually check before moving into the intersection and turning left.
Read the worked answer
A flashing yellow arrow means permitted, unprotected left turn: you may turn, but only when it is safe, and you must yield to oncoming traffic that has a green ball, to vehicles turning right from the opposing direction, and to pedestrians and cyclists in the crosswalk.
It is not a protected turn. The opposing through lanes have a green ball, so those drivers are not stopping for you. With heavy, continuous opposing traffic and a pedestrian in the crosswalk, you cannot turn yet.
Procedure:
- Stop behind the stop line (or the crosswalk) rather than creeping into it.
- Signal, then scan: oncoming through traffic, opposing right-turners, the crosswalk on your left, cyclists, and the pedestrian already in the crosswalk.
- If you pull forward into the intersection to wait for a gap, you must be able to clear the intersection before your signal changes; otherwise wait behind the stop line. Never stop on the crosswalk.
- When the arrow changes to a steady yellow, finish clearing if you are already in the intersection; if you have not entered, stop.
The truck tailgating you does not change any of this - pressure from behind is not right of way.
3. You wanted to go straight, but you are in the left lane. What do the signs require, and what is the safe and legal plan given the solid white line?
Read the worked answer
The white sign with the black arrow and 'ONLY,' together with LEFT TURN MUST TURN LEFT, is a mandatory lane-use regulatory sign. Your lane has exactly one legal movement: a left turn. Going straight from it is a violation and is also where 'right hook' collisions with through traffic happen.
The solid white line to your right confirms that a legal lane change is no longer available at this point; solid white lines are not to be crossed. So the plan is:
- Complete the left turn when the flashing yellow arrow and gaps allow, yielding as described.
- Reroute afterwards rather than improvising in the intersection: turn left onto the cross street, then use a signed U-turn, a permitted left into a business entrance, or a block-loop of right turns to come back to the store.
- Do not stop in the lane to reconsider, do not reverse, and do not swerve across the solid line. The driver behind is following closely; a sudden stop or late lane change is exactly how rear-end and sideswipe crashes occur here.
Lesson for next time: mandatory lane-use signs are posted well in advance precisely so the choice is made before the solid line begins.