Practice session
Traffic signals
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The whole pool, with the answer and the explanation for each one. Practise first, then read through anything you were unsure of.
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1 of 17 · Traffic signals
You are facing this light and want to turn right, and no sign forbids it. What must you do first?
- A.Slow down and turn without stopping
- B.Wait until a green arrow appears
- C.Turn only when the pedestrian signal shows a hand
- D.Come to a complete stop, then turn when the way is clearAnswer
Explanation: A red light means stop first. You may then turn right, or turn left from a one-way street onto another one-way street, when the way is clear.
2 of 17 · Traffic signals
The light changes to amber as you approach the intersection. What should you do?
- A.Speed up so you get through before the red
- B.Brake hard no matter how close the vehicle behind is
- C.Stop if you can do it safely; otherwise clear the intersection carefullyAnswer
- D.Keep your speed, because amber only means caution
Explanation: Amber warns that red is coming. Stop when you can do so without risking a rear-end collision; if you are too close, continue through with care.
3 of 17 · Traffic signals
What does a flashing green light mean for the driver facing it?
- A.You may turn left, go straight or turn right firstAnswer
- B.Oncoming traffic has the advance green, so you must wait
- C.The signal has failed; treat it as a stop sign
- D.You may only turn left from that lane
Explanation: Facing a flashing green light you may turn left, go straight ahead or turn right from the proper lane. It is called an advance green because oncoming traffic still faces a red light; pedestrians must not cross on a flashing green light unless a pedestrian signal tells them to.
4 of 17 · Traffic signals
The light is red but a green arrow points to the left. What are you allowed to do?
- A.Drive straight through after a complete stop
- B.Turn left from the left-turn laneAnswer
- C.Go in any direction, because the arrow cancels the red light
- D.Nothing at all until the light turns green
Explanation: When a left-turn green arrow is shown with a red light, you may turn left from the left-turn lane. Vehicles turning left from the opposite direction may also be turning, because they too face a left-turn green arrow.
5 of 17 · Traffic signals
What does a flashing amber light at an intersection mean?
- A.Stop completely, then go when the way is clear
- B.The light is about to turn red
- C.Slow down and drive through with cautionAnswer
- D.The intersection is closed to traffic
Explanation: A flashing yellow light means you should drive with caution when approaching and moving through the intersection.
6 of 17 · Traffic signals
How must you deal with a flashing red light?
- A.Slow down and drive through carefully
- B.Wait beside it until it turns green
- C.Yield only to traffic coming from your left
- D.Stop completely, then go when it is safeAnswer
Explanation: A flashing red is treated exactly like a stop sign: stop, look, and proceed only when the intersection is clear.
7 of 17 · Traffic signals
This pedestrian signal is lit while you wait to make your turn. What must you do?
- A.Turn quickly before anyone steps off the curb
- B.Sound your horn so pedestrians wait for you
- C.Yield to the pedestrians who are crossingAnswer
- D.Back up so the crosswalk stays clear
Explanation: The walking figure lets pedestrians start crossing, and every turning driver must give way to them.
8 of 17 · Traffic signals
What does this orange hand tell a pedestrian at the corner?
- A.Cross quickly at any time
- B.Cross only if a vehicle stops for you
- C.The signal is out of service
- D.Do not start crossing; finish quickly if already on the roadAnswer
Explanation: A pedestrian facing a flashing or steady hand symbol should not begin to cross. Those who have already begun should go as quickly as possible to a safe area, and while crossing they still have the right-of-way over vehicles.
9 of 17 · Traffic signals
You are waiting on a left-turn green arrow when it changes to a yellow arrow. What does that mean?
- A.The green light is about to appear for other traffic — do not start your turnAnswer
- B.You have extra time to complete the turn
- C.Oncoming traffic now has a red light
- D.Pedestrians may now cross in front of you
Explanation: The yellow arrow is the end of your protected turn, not extra time for it: the green is about to appear for traffic in one or both directions. Do not start the turn. Stop if you can do so safely; if you are already committed, complete the turn with caution.
10 of 17 · Traffic signals
A round signal on top of the traffic lights shows a white vertical bar on a dark background. What must you do?
- A.Yield to public transit vehicles — it is a transit priority signalAnswer
- B.Treat it as a green light for all traffic
- C.Stop and wait for a pedestrian signal
- D.Turn right only
Explanation: It is a transit priority signal, and both traffic and pedestrians must yield to the transit vehicle. The bar sits on a round signal above the ordinary lights, and it lets a bus or streetcar go through, turn or leave a stop ahead of everyone else.
11 of 17 · Traffic signals
A power failure has left the traffic lights at a busy intersection completely dark. How do you proceed?
- A.Treat it as an all-way stop: yield to traffic already in it and to vehicles on your rightAnswer
- B.Carry on — dark lights mean no rules apply
- C.Yield only to traffic on the larger road
- D.Wait at the stop line until the lights come back on
Explanation: Dark lights do not make an intersection lawless — they make it an all-way stop. Yield to vehicles already in the intersection and to those entering from your right, then go cautiously.
12 of 17 · Traffic signals
At a fully protected left turn, your left-turn arrow has gone out and the through traffic now has a green light. May you still turn left?
- A.No — you may not begin the turn once that green appearsAnswer
- B.Yes, if the way is clear of oncoming traffic
- C.Yes, but only one vehicle at a time
- D.Yes, after sounding your horn
Explanation: A fully protected left turn has its own lights, and they run their own cycle: green arrow, then yellow, then red for left-turning traffic only. Once the through and right-turning traffic gets its green, your turn is over — you may not begin one. If the light turns yellow while you are already in the intersection, complete the turn with caution.
13 of 17 · Traffic signals
A single flashing yellow light hangs over an obstruction in the road. What does it mean?
- A.Drive with caution — it is a flashing yellow beaconAnswer
- B.Come to a complete stop before it
- C.The road ahead is closed
- D.Pedestrians are crossing
Explanation: A beacon is a single flashing light, and its colour carries the whole message. Yellow, whether over an intersection, a warning sign or an obstruction, means caution. A flashing red beacon is the other one: a complete stop, then go when it is safe.
14 of 17 · Traffic signals
There are no pedestrian signals at this intersection. On which lights may a pedestrian NOT cross?
- A.A flashing green light or a left-turn green arrowAnswer
- B.A steady green light
- C.A steady amber light
- D.Any light — without a pedestrian signal, crossing is never allowed
Explanation: Without pedestrian signals, a pedestrian facing a green light may cross — but not on a flashing green or a left-turn green arrow. Both of those give turning vehicles a protected movement across the crosswalk, which is exactly where the pedestrian would be.
15 of 17 · Traffic signals
A pedestrian waits at a crossing fitted with a push-button. What must they do to get a walk signal?
- A.Press the button — the walk signal will not come on otherwiseAnswer
- B.Simply wait — the signal cycles on its own
- C.Step onto the crosswalk to trigger a sensor
- D.Wave at the traffic to stop
Explanation: Where there is a push-button, the walk signal only appears if someone presses it. It is worth knowing as a driver too: an intersection pedestrian signal gives people more time to cross than the regular lights do, so the wait you are sitting through is longer than it looks.
16 of 17 · Traffic signals
You arrive at an intersection facing a steady green light. What does it allow, and what must you still yield to?
- A.Go straight only; turns need an arrow
- B.Any movement, with no obligation to yield — the green is your right-of-way
- C.Left, straight or right — after yielding to vehicles and pedestrians already in the intersectionAnswer
- D.Left or right only after coming to a complete stop
Explanation: A green light lets you turn left, go straight or turn right, but only after yielding to the vehicles and pedestrians already in the intersection — and when you turn either way, you must yield to pedestrians crossing it. A green light is permission to proceed, never a right to take the space someone is already in.
17 of 17 · Traffic signals
You have edged into the intersection waiting to turn left on a green light. The light turns red before a gap appears. What do you do?
- A.Complete the turn when it is safe to do soAnswer
- B.Reverse out of the intersection to behind the stop line
- C.Stay where you are until the light is green again
- D.Go straight ahead instead and turn at the next intersection
Explanation: If the light turns red while you are in the intersection, complete your turn when it is safe. Waiting there for another green leaves you parked in the path of the traffic that now has one, and reversing in an intersection is worse still. Oncoming traffic has stopped for its own red, so the gap you were waiting for is usually the one that appears.