Traffic Laws and Rules of the Road
Signs, signals, and right-of-way
Florida tests rules as short scenarios, so learn the decision each sign or signal demands rather than its shape alone. A steady red means stop and stay stopped; after a full stop you may turn right unless a sign prohibits it, and you may turn left from a one-way street onto another one-way street unless prohibited. That one-way-to-one-way case is a favorite trap, because the answer is 'yes, after stopping' only there. A flashing yellow arrow means the left turn is unprotected: yield to oncoming traffic and pedestrians. At a four-way stop, the first vehicle to stop goes first; if two arrive together, the one on the right goes first, and a vehicle going straight beats one turning left.
Speed and spacing
Know the statutory defaults: 30 mph in business and residential districts, 20 mph in a posted school zone when the beacon flashes or children are present, 55 mph on other roads unless posted otherwise, and 70 mph on limited-access highways. Florida's Move Over Law requires you to vacate the lane next to a stopped emergency, tow, sanitation, or utility vehicle, or slow to 20 mph below the limit (5 mph if the limit is 20 or less).
School buses and sharing the road
Stop for a school bus showing red flashing lights unless you are meeting it on a divided highway separated by a raised median or barrier. Give bicyclists at least three feet when passing, and treat a motorcycle as entitled to a full lane.
Worked rule of thumb
Turning right on red: stop completely behind the line, yield to pedestrians and cross traffic, then proceed. A rolling stop fails both the exam question and the road test.