Traffic signals, and who outranks them · Trafikpilot

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Lesson9 min

Traffic signals, and who outranks them

Every aspect, arrow signals, failed signals, and police directions

You will learn, among other things:

What each light means
Where to stop
Arrow signals
When the signals are dark or flashing amber
A police officer's signals come first
What the test asks about signals

Stockholm intersection at dusk with a red pedestrian signal and red vehicle signals. — The pedestrian signal and the vehicle signal govern different road users, red for pedestrians does not mean green for you.

Rule

What each light means

Green. You may proceed, if the way is clear. Green is permission, never a guarantee: you still give way to anyone lawfully in the junction and to pedestrians already crossing. Amber. Stop. You may continue only if you are so close when it appears that stopping would be unsafe. Red. Stop, and do not pass the signal. Red and amber together, the signal is about to turn green. You must not move off yet. Until it does, this means exactly what red means. Flashing amber, the signal is not controlling the junction. Proceed with particular care, and follow whatever signs are posted.

Rule

Where to stop

Stop at the stop line if there is one. If there is no line, stop before you enter the junction, where you can still see the signal. Stopping past the line is an offence in itself, and it also puts you where you cannot see the signal change.

Rule

Arrow signals

A green arrow lets you go in the direction it points even when the main signal is red, but only in that direction, and you still give way to anyone already in your path. An amber arrow means the direction it points is about to be closed. Prepare to stop. An arrow is a permission for one movement, not a general green.

Scenario

When the signals are dark or flashing amber

A signal that is dark, or flashing amber, is not controlling the junction. It does not mean the junction has no rules. It means the ordinary rules have come back. So look for a give-way or stop sign and obey it. If there is no sign either, the right-hand rule applies: give way to traffic coming from your right. This is the situation people handle worst, because a junction that is normally signalled often feels like a main road. It is not one unless a sign says so.

Rule

A police officer's signals come first

Under the Traffic Ordinance (Trafikförordningen 2 kap. 2 §) you must follow the directions of a police officer, and those directions override traffic signals, road signs and road markings alike. The three signals to know: • Arm held straight up: stop, for everyone. • Arm held out sideways: stop, for traffic approaching from in front of the officer or from behind them. It stays in force as long as the officer faces the same way. • A beckoning movement: traffic in the direction the signal is given to may proceed. If an officer waves you through a red light, you go. This feels wrong and is correct.

Exam trap

What the test asks about signals

Red and amber does not mean go. It is the most-missed aspect, because several countries do not use it at all and drivers from those countries read it as a green-in-waiting they may anticipate. Green is not priority. If a pedestrian is already on the crossing, or a car is stranded in the junction, green does not entitle you to proceed into them. Amber is stop, not hurry. The exception for being too close to stop safely is a safety exception, not permission to accelerate. Flashing amber is not a green. It hands the junction back to the signs and the right-hand rule.

Content

What each light means
Where to stop
Arrow signals
When the signals are dark or flashing amber
A police officer's signals come first
What the test asks about signals

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