The Flashing Yellow Arrow and the Stroller
You are westbound at 6:10 p.m. on a four-lane arterial, first in line in the left-turn lane, waiting on a flashing yellow arrow. Rain has just started and the pavement is slick. A pickup is approaching from the east at roughly 45 mph in a 40 mph zone, headlights on. On your left, a woman with a stroller steps off the curb into the marked crosswalk that spans the street you intend to turn into, and the pedestrian signal for that crosswalk shows the walking figure. A car has pulled up close behind you. Your arrow has been flashing yellow for several seconds and the through light for oncoming traffic is green.
1. What does a flashing yellow arrow permit you to do, and to whom must you yield before completing the turn?
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A flashing yellow arrow is a permissive left turn: you may turn, but you are not protected. You must yield to:
- Oncoming vehicles going straight or turning right into your path (here, the pickup).
- Pedestrians in the crosswalk you are turning across (here, the woman and stroller).
- Any vehicle already lawfully inside the intersection.
The green through light for the oncoming direction confirms the pickup has the right of way. A flashing yellow arrow is not a warning to hurry - it is an instruction to judge the gap yourself and stop if the gap is not clearly sufficient.
2. The pickup is still about 150 feet away and appears to be slowing. Can you turn in front of it? Explain your reasoning.
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Do not turn on the assumption that the pickup is slowing. At 45 mph a vehicle covers about 66 feet per second; 150 feet is barely over two seconds, which is below the gap you need to accelerate across a wet intersection. A slowing vehicle may only be adjusting for the rain, and the slick surface will lengthen your own acceleration and stopping distances.
The pedestrian in the crosswalk already blocks your path in any event, so the gap question is moot until she clears. Holds: wait for the crosswalk to empty and for a gap you can clear with margin to spare. If the pickup's turn signal is not on and its speed is ambiguous, treat it as going straight.
3. The arrow changes to solid yellow, then to red, while you are still waiting in the intersection for the pedestrian to clear. What must you do now?
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Finish clearing the intersection once it is safe, then proceed out of the way - but do not push through the crosswalk while the woman is still in it.
Reasoning:
- You entered the intersection lawfully on a permissive indication; you cannot simply reverse or stop in the middle of it.
- A red arrow ends your permission to begin a turn, not your obligation to clear an intersection you already occupy.
- The pedestrian's right of way does not expire because your light changed.
Once she and the stroller are clear of your path, complete the turn, and be ready for cross traffic whose green may now be starting. If the intersection backs up, stay behind the crosswalk rather than creeping into it.