Flashing Yellow Arrow, Worn Markings, Wet Glare
It is 9:40 p.m. and raining hard enough that your wipers are on their fastest setting. You are stopped in the left-turn lane of a four-lane road, waiting to cross two lanes of oncoming traffic. The signal head over your lane shows a flashing yellow arrow. The pavement markings are badly worn and glare off the wet surface: you can make out a double yellow line to your left, a white line to your right, and half of a painted left-turn arrow under your front bumper. Oncoming traffic is moving steadily at about 40 mph in a posted 35 mph zone, and the road curves slightly, so headlights appear later than you expect. A car has pulled up close behind you.
1. What does the flashing yellow arrow require of you, and what would it mean if the arrow were a steady green instead?
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The arrow shape tells you the turn is permitted; the flash tells you it is not protected.
- Flashing yellow arrow: you may turn left, but you must yield to oncoming traffic and to pedestrians in the crosswalk. There is no guaranteed gap and oncoming traffic has no reason to slow for you.
- Steady green arrow: the turn is protected - oncoming traffic is stopped by a red - so you proceed without yielding to oncoming vehicles (still watch for pedestrians and for anyone running the light).
- Steady green ball with no arrow: same yield obligation as the flashing yellow, on a permissive basis.
Practical consequence: with the flashing yellow, the decision is entirely yours, and a misjudged gap is your fault, not the signal's.
2. How do the markings visible under the wet glare help you confirm your position, and what should you do when they are this worn?
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Markings are a confirmation layer, not the primary instruction - and that matters more when they are worn.
- The double yellow to your left is the centerline separating you from opposing traffic. You should not cross it to set up your turn; your turn lane exists for that.
- The white line on your right separates your turn lane from the through lanes. White lines separate traffic moving in the same direction; yellow separates opposing traffic.
- The painted left-turn arrow confirms you are in the correct lane. If you can only half-see it, verify with the overhead sign and the lane geometry before committing.
In rain and glare, worn markings give you less warning of the lane's edges. That is a signal to slow down, not to guess. If you cannot confirm you are in the turn lane, continue straight and reroute rather than turn from the wrong lane.
3. A gap appears. Do you take the gap you would have taken in daylight and dry pavement? Explain your reasoning.
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No - you need a materially larger gap than the same situation at noon on dry pavement. Reasons compound:
- Closing speed is harder to judge. Headlights appear late on the curve, and a single headlight or a pair of lights farther back can read as one vehicle at a different distance.
- Your own stopping distance has grown. Wet pavement lengthens braking distance, so your ability to abort a bad decision is reduced.
- Oncoming traffic is speeding. At 40 mph in a 35 zone, each oncoming car covers about 59 feet per second. A gap that looks like three seconds in daylight is a different number at night in the rain.
- Visibility law. With wipers running, your headlights must be on - which also means oncoming drivers see you later through spray than they would in clear air.
Rule of thumb: if you have to ask whether the gap is big enough, it is not. Wait for one where you would have time to stop even if the oncoming car never touched its brakes.