Traffic Signs, Signals, and Road Markings
Montana's permit exam tests whether you can read the road at a glance - sign shape and color, signal phase, and pavement markings. Nearly every question here asks you to match a visual cue to one required action.
Signs by color and shape
Red means stop, yield, or prohibition (STOP octagon, YIELD triangle, DO NOT ENTER). Yellow diamond signs warn - curves, intersections, wildlife crossings. Orange marks work zones. White is regulatory: speed limits, lane use, turn restrictions. Green gives guidance and distance, blue marks services, and fluorescent yellow-green marks school and pedestrian zones. Shape matters too: the only downward-pointing triangle is YIELD, the only octagon is STOP, a pennant marks a no-passing zone, and a round sign warns of a railroad crossing.
Signals
A steady red means stop and stay stopped. You may turn right after a complete stop unless a sign forbids it, and you may turn left from a one-way street onto another one-way. Flashing red works like a stop sign; flashing yellow means proceed with caution. Steady yellow warns that the light is changing - stop if you can do so safely rather than accelerating. Green means go only when the intersection is clear.
Pavement markings
Yellow lines separate traffic moving in opposite directions; white lines separate traffic moving the same way. Broken lines may be crossed, solid lines should not be. A solid yellow on your side of the centerline marks a no-passing zone. Two-way left-turn lanes are bounded by solid and broken yellow lines.
Worked example
You reach an intersection where the signal head is dark after a storm, with no officer and no stop sign posted. Treat it as an all-way stop: come to a full stop, yield to vehicles already in the intersection, and yield to the vehicle on your right if two of you arrive together. Assuming a dark signal means "proceed" is the classic error.
Traps that cost marks
- Rolling through a right turn on red instead of making a full stop.
- Reading YIELD as "no stop needed" - you must stop when traffic is present.
- Crossing a solid white line at the last second to make an exit.
- Assuming green gives you the right of way over a pedestrian still in the crosswalk.