Pavement Markings and Signals
Pavement Markings and Signals
Pavement markings and traffic signals control lanes, passing, and intersections. The exam tests whether you can read line color and pattern and respond correctly to each signal display.
Core rules
- Yellow lines separate traffic moving in opposite directions; white lines separate traffic moving in the same direction.
- A broken yellow line on your side permits passing when safe; a solid yellow line on your side prohibits passing.
- Double solid yellow means no passing in either direction.
- A two-way left-turn lane has solid yellow outside lines and broken yellow inside lines; use it only for turning left, not for passing or travel.
- On a divided highway, the left edge is marked with yellow and the right edge with white.
- Stop lines and crosswalks are white; a stop line marks where to stop for a signal or sign.
- Steady red = stop; flashing red = stop, then proceed when safe; steady yellow = stop if you can do so safely; flashing yellow = proceed with caution.
- A green arrow gives a protected turn; a flashing yellow arrow means the turn is permitted but you must yield to oncoming traffic and pedestrians.
Worked example
You are turning left at a signal showing a flashing yellow arrow. Oncoming traffic is approaching. The correct action is to enter the intersection only when there is a safe gap, yielding to oncoming vehicles and pedestrians. The flashing yellow arrow does not protect you; it permits the turn after yielding. A green arrow would give you the right of way.
Traps
Do not treat a flashing yellow arrow as a green arrow. Do not cross a solid yellow line on your side to pass, and do not use a two-way left-turn lane as a travel lane. Remember that yellow marks the left edge on a divided highway, not the right.