Green Arrow, No Turn on Red, and a Planned U-Turn
At 6:50 a.m. you are northbound on a four-lane arterial in Santa Fe, posted 45 mph, approaching a signalized intersection. You need to turn right onto a side street and then make a U-turn to return south. The signal for your direction is a circular red. On the mast arm beside it is a rectangular regulatory sign reading NO TURN ON RED. A pedestrian stands on the corner but is not in the crosswalk. The cross street has a green light and moderate traffic. After you turn right, you plan to use a median opening 200 feet ahead; a NO U-TURN sign is mounted on that median facing your direction. A driver behind you taps the horn. You have 30 seconds before the light for the cross street changes. You must decide whether to turn now, wait for a green arrow, and whether the U-turn is legal.
1. Does the NO TURN ON RED sign prohibit your right turn while the signal is a circular red? Explain how you would decide.
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Yes. A right turn on red is generally allowed after a full stop, but the NO TURN ON RED sign removes that permission for this approach. The sign is a regulatory control, not a suggestion. The pedestrian standing on the corner does not create an exception, because the pedestrian is not in the crosswalk and the sign is not conditioned on pedestrian presence. The driver honking behind you also does not change the rule. You should remain stopped at the limit line until the signal gives you a lawful green indication, then turn only after yielding to pedestrians and any traffic that has a green.
2. The signal changes to a green right-turn arrow. May you turn without stopping? What if it were a circular green instead?
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A green right-turn arrow authorizes the turn in the direction of the arrow; you do not need to wait for another green, but you must still proceed carefully and yield to any pedestrian lawfully in the crosswalk. The NO TURN ON RED restriction applies to red, not to a green arrow. If the signal were a circular green, you could also turn right, but you would have to yield to pedestrians and to other traffic as required; the key difference is that the circular green is not a protected arrow, so your path may conflict with pedestrians or vehicles. In both cases, the earlier red interval was controlled by the NO TURN ON RED sign.
3. Is the U-turn at the median opening permitted? What additional information would change your answer?
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No. The NO U-TURN sign facing you at the median opening prohibits the U-turn. A median opening is not automatically a legal U-turn location; it may exist for left turns, emergency access, or maintenance. If the sign were absent, you would still need to confirm that no local restriction applies, that the opening is wide enough for your vehicle, that sight lines are clear, and that you can complete the turn without interfering with traffic. Because the sign is present, your practical options are to continue to a lawful intersection or route and reverse direction there.