The waving driver at an unmarked four-way junction
Saturday, 17:40, low sun and a damp road after a shower. You are riding a 250 cc naked bike eastbound along a narrow two-way residential street in Skopje where the limit is 50 km/h, at an indicated 45 km/h. Ahead is an unmarked four-way intersection - no signs, no signals, no stop line. A grey hatchback approaches from your right at about 40 km/h and is not slowing. A cyclist is 20 m behind you and closing. Fifteen metres past the junction there is a marked pedestrian crossing, and several school-age children are walking along the pavement. Wet leaves and grit have collected in the gutter at the corner. The hatchback driver lifts a hand off the wheel and waves you through while the car is still rolling.
1. Who has priority here, and what should you actually do in the three seconds before you enter the junction?
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At an unmarked intersection the right-hand rule applies: traffic coming from your right has priority. The hatchback is therefore the privileged vehicle, and you must be ready to give way.
A wave is a courtesy, not a legal transfer of priority, and the car is still moving - the driver's intention can change in the next second, especially with the sun in his eyes and a junction he may only half-see.
So: roll off the throttle, cover the front brake with two fingers, reduce to walking pace, and pick a point where you would stop without entering his path. Do not accelerate into the gap he seems to be offering. Keep your eyes on his front wheels rather than his hand - wheels tell you whether the car is really slowing. Also glance at the crossing beyond: stopping mid-junction because of children would leave you exposed.
2. How do the wet leaves, the low sun and the cyclist behind you change the plan?
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Each element removes a margin, and they stack.
Wet leaves and grit in the gutter cut friction sharply, so braking must be earlier and gentler, and any lean at low speed on that surface is risky. The low sun means you are hard to see and your own view of the crossing is degraded, so slow enough that you can stop within what you can actually see.
The cyclist closing at 20 m is the element most riders forget. If you brake sharply at the last moment, he may run into you or swerve around your left into the oncoming lane. So brake progressively and early, check the mirror before you slow, and signal your intention with the brake light rather than a sudden grab. If he commits to passing on your left, hold your line and let him go rather than drifting left into his path.
3. The hatchback now stops and flashes its headlights. Do you proceed?
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Not immediately. A stopped car can still hide a hazard: a vehicle overtaking it on its left, a scooter filtering past, or a cyclist coming up on your left - the one who was behind you.
Confirm three things before you move: the car's wheels are genuinely stationary, you have eye contact or at least a clear view of the driver, and the lane beyond the stopped car is visibly empty. Then cross at low speed with the brakes covered, taking a line that keeps you clear of the car's front bumper in case it creeps forward.
Do not treat the flash as permission to hurry. The children near the crossing are the second hazard - a rider who accelerates to 'use the gap' arrives at the zebra faster than he can react. Crossing decisively but slowly costs you two seconds and removes most of the risk.