Road signs

Signs give orders, warnings and directions. Their shape and color tell you which kind you face before you can read them. One rule covers them all: obey every warning sign, whatever its shape or color.

STOP and YIELD

• The red eight-sided STOP sign means a full stop: at the limit line, or before the crosswalk if there is no line, or before the intersection if there is neither. Look in all directions before you go.
• The red and white downward triangle, YIELD, means slow down and be ready to stop so any vehicle, bicyclist or pedestrian can pass before you go on.

Red and white regulatory signs

These are orders. DO NOT ENTER means you must not drive onto that road or ramp. If you find yourself against traffic, you may see DO NOT ENTER and WRONG WAY signs: back out or turn around as soon as it is safe. At night, road reflectors that shine red in your headlights mean you are going the wrong way.

The red circle with a red line

The picture inside shows what you may not do: a U-turn arrow means no U-turn, a left or right arrow means no left or no right turn. Sometimes words are added.

White regulatory signs

White rectangles give rules you must obey. The handbook's chart and text show:

• NO TURNS: no left, right or U-turn; go straight.

• LEFT TURN YIELD ON GREEN: you may turn left on a green circle, but oncoming traffic has green too, so you yield.

• A curved arrow with ONLY: that lane must turn that way.

• DO NOT BLOCK INTERSECTION: wait behind the line until there is room to cross completely.

• DO NOT PASS: no passing on that stretch.

• SLOWER TRAFFIC KEEP RIGHT: slow drivers use the right lane. KEEP RIGHT: stay to the right, as the sign shows.

• ONE WAY: traffic moves only in the arrow's direction. TWO WAY TRAFFIC AHEAD: oncoming traffic soon shares the road.

• NO PARKING ANY TIME (red letters) and EMERGENCY PARKING ONLY: where you may not park, or may stop only in an emergency.

• YIELD TO UPHILL TRAFFIC: on a narrow mountain road the downhill driver gives way.

• A plaque such as 3 TRACKS under a crossbuck: more than one track, so expect a train on any track, from either direction.

• NO TURN ON RED: wait for the green even to turn right.

Railroad signs

A round yellow sign with a black X, or a white X-shaped crossbuck, means a railroad crossing: look, listen, slow down, be ready to stop and let any train pass. At many crossings a blue and white sign explains what to do in an emergency, for example a car stuck on the tracks.

Warning signs (yellow diamonds)

Diamonds warn of conditions ahead. The handbook's chart shows slippery when wet, merging traffic, divided highway and its end, two-way traffic, lane ends, added lane, traffic signal ahead, pedestrian crossing, crossroad, stop ahead, yield ahead, a curve, a T intersection, a winding road, and a long directional arrow. Other warning signs alert you to people walking or cycling, schools and playgrounds, school buses, and the zones where students get on and off.

School signs

A five-sided sign means a school is close: slow down and stop for children crossing.

Construction and maintenance signs (orange)

Orange diamonds announce road work: THRU TRAFFIC MERGE LEFT, ROAD CLOSED AHEAD, ROAD MACHINERY AHEAD, a flagger, SHOULDER WORK AHEAD. Slow down, leave extra space, expect sudden stops, merge early without crossing the cones, and obey flaggers.

Guide signs (green, blue, brown)

They show the way and the services: an airport, a recreation area such as cross-country skiing, a rest area one mile ahead.

Placards and special markings

• Diamond placards on trucks (flammable, radioactive, explosives, poison) mean a dangerous load; these trucks must stop before railroad tracks.
• An orange triangle with a red border marks a slow-moving vehicle.
• NEV ROUTE and NEV USE ONLY: watch for slow neighborhood electric vehicles.
• SLOWER TRAFFIC USE TURNOUTS: on a two-lane road where no one can pass safely, a slow driver with five or more vehicles behind must use the turnout to let them pass.
• A white diamond with CARPOOL LANE on the pavement marks an HOV lane.