Stop Sign, Officer and Vulnerable Road Users
You are driving a 26-tonne rigid truck on a wet urban road and approach a four-way intersection. Your approach has a stop sign and a solid stop line; the cross street has no stop signs. A cyclist ahead on your right is signalling to turn left across your path. On the far side, a pedestrian waits at a marked crosswalk. A police officer stands in the middle of the junction and waves your lane through, even though cross traffic is still moving. You are 20 minutes behind schedule and the rain is getting heavier. Your truck is loaded to 24 tonnes, within its 26-tonne gross limit. You must decide what legal and safety obligations apply before you move, how to rank the hazards, and what to do if the officer’s signal and the pedestrian’s actions conflict.
1. What must you do at the stop line, and how does the officer’s signal change your legal duty?
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A stop sign requires a complete stop at the stop line - not a rolling stop - before entering the junction. The officer’s signal is a direction to proceed, but it does not cancel your duty to drive with due care. Treat the wave as permission to move only when the way is actually clear; cross traffic is still moving, so you must creep forward, check both directions and be ready to stop. If the officer’s signal is ambiguous, make eye contact and wait rather than guess. The wet road increases stopping distance, so approach slowly and avoid committing until you have a gap.
2. Rank the hazards and explain how you would negotiate the junction.
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Highest priority is the pedestrian in or entering the marked crosswalk: pedestrians in a crosswalk have priority, and a 26-tonne truck needs a large stopping distance. Next is the cyclist: a left-turn signal is only an intention, not a right of way, so do not accelerate across their path; hold back and let them clear or make eye contact. Cross traffic is next, because the officer’s wave does not physically stop it. The officer is a control, not a hazard, but watch for other drivers obeying or ignoring the signal. Move at walking pace, use mirrors and blind-spot checks, and sound the horn only if a collision is imminent.
3. What would you do if the officer waves you through but the pedestrian steps into the crosswalk?
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Stop and give way. An officer’s direction does not authorise you to endanger a pedestrian, and the pedestrian is already in a marked crossing. Brake smoothly, avoid swerving into the cyclist or cross traffic, and wait until the crossing is clear. If the officer repeats the wave, stay stopped and signal or shout that a pedestrian is crossing; do not move until you can see it is safe. Record nothing as a collision unless contact occurs, but report the near miss to your operator if company policy requires it.