Dark signals, a pedestrian and an ambulance in Alexandria
At 17:45 you approach a four-way intersection in Alexandria on a two-lane street at about 40 km/h. The traffic lights are completely dark after a power cut. There is no police officer. The stop line is faded but visible. A car approaches from your right and is already slightly into the junction. A pedestrian with a white cane waits at the marked crossing on your left. An ambulance with siren and flashing beacon approaches from the opposite direction and is signalling to turn across your path. Your lane is clear ahead, but a minibus is close behind you. The sun is low and glare is strong.
1. Who has priority, and in what order should you deal with the car from the right, the pedestrian and the ambulance?
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First, treat the dark signal as no signal at all: slow down and be ready to stop. The ambulance has emergency priority, so give it a clear path if you can do so safely - but do not brake abruptly with the minibus close behind. The pedestrian at the marked crossing has priority once they are waiting to cross or have started; prepare to stop and do not wave them into the path of the turning ambulance. The car from the right is already partly in the junction, so let it clear rather than forcing a collision. In practice the order is: avoid the immediate collision, yield to the ambulance if safe, stop for the pedestrian, then give way to the car from the right. The minibus behind means your braking must be progressive, not a slam.
2. How should a dark signal and a faded stop line change your approach?
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A dark signal gives you no green. In Egyptian practice, as in most systems, you fall back to signs, then to the general right-of-way rule, and you proceed only when you are sure the junction is clear. The faded stop line still marks where you should stop: stop before it, not on the crossing and not inside the junction. If the line is hard to see, use the position of the kerb, the crossing and the junction edge to judge. Approach at a speed that lets you stop within the visible distance, cover the brake, and make eye contact with the other drivers. Do not treat the darkness as a licence to roll through.
3. The driver from the right flashes their headlights and waves you through. Do you go?
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No - not on the wave alone. A wave or flash is a courtesy signal, not a legal grant of priority, and the other driver may have misjudged the pedestrian, the ambulance or the minibus behind you. Check the pedestrian crossing, the ambulance's path and your mirrors first. If the car from the right has actually stopped and the junction is clear, you may proceed, but you take the responsibility for the decision. If there is any doubt, wait. The safe rule is: never move into a junction because someone waved; move because you have checked and the way is clear.