The Buried Stop Sign and the Courtesy Wave
On a snowy January evening in a St. John's residential neighbourhood you approach a four-way intersection at about 25 km/h. A snowbank pushed up by the plough has buried the stop sign on your street; the other three approaches have visible signs. A hatchback from your right is already stopped. A pickup directly opposite is stopped and signalling a left turn. A cyclist with a flashing red rear light is riding in the bike lane on the far side of the intersection, travelling the same direction you are, and will cross the pickup's path. A pedestrian with a stroller waits on the corner the pickup intends to turn into. The hatchback driver waves you forward with a hand gesture. Ploughed snow has narrowed your lane to roughly one and a half vehicle widths, and a car is following you closely.
1. Does the buried stop sign or the other driver's wave change who must yield? Explain your reasoning.
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Two separate issues. First, the buried sign: a stop sign hidden by a snowbank is still a stop sign in law, and you should assume the intersection is stop-controlled on all four approaches. Even if the sign were genuinely gone, an uncontrolled intersection requires you to slow enough to stop and yield to traffic approaching from your right. Second, the wave: another driver's hand gesture is a courtesy, not a transfer of right of way. You cannot see what the hatchback driver can see, you are responsible for your own gap, and two vulnerable users - a pedestrian with a stroller and a cyclist - are moving through that path. Treat the wave as information only ("the hatchback is not going") and confirm the intersection yourself before the wheels move.
2. Set out the order in which each road user may proceed, and identify what the pickup must wait for.
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The hatchback goes first: it arrived first and it is on your right. The pickup opposite is turning left, so it must yield to oncoming traffic - you - and also to the cyclist riding straight through on the far bike lane, and to the pedestrian in the crosswalk it is turning into. That puts you second: after the hatchback clears, once the pickup is actually held and its driver has visibly seen you and the cyclist, and once the crosswalk is empty. The cyclist travelling straight has right of way over the turning pickup. The pedestrian in the crosswalk outranks every turning vehicle. If the pickup turns anyway, your obligation is to wait - right of way is something you are given, not something you enforce with a bumper.
3. You decide to go. Describe the sequence of checks and the physical move, including how you handle the tailgater.
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Signal early and brake early and gently, so the follower sees you decelerating. Stop behind the line rather than creeping into the crosswalk, then edge forward a metre to see past the snowbank, and scan left-right-left. Make eye contact with the hatchback and pickup drivers. Re-check the bike lane and crosswalk before releasing the brake. Accelerate normally, not briskly - the lane is narrowed and the edges are icy. If the tailgater stays glued to your bumper, do not speed up to buy a gap; maintain your speed, let it follow, and where it is safe, wave it past or pull over briefly. Speed is not a defence against a following driver's poor judgement; predictability is.