Directions given by a traffic control person
- must be obeyed in all cases ✓
- do not over-ride the regular rules of the road
- must be obeyed if they do not conflict with the rules of the road
- should not be obeyed on public roads
Answer: A. must be obeyed in all cases
Directions given by a traffic control person must be obeyed in all cases.
Why this is the answer
The handbook tells drivers plainly that they must obey the directions of traffic control persons, and it puts that instruction alongside the requirement to obey road construction signs from the start to the end of a construction zone. Nothing in the handbook makes that duty conditional on whether the direction happens to agree with the normal rules of the road. The person is controlling traffic in the zone, so their signal is what you follow, and you should also watch for them when none is immediately visible.
Why the other answers are wrong
- B. do not over-ride the regular rules of the road — The handbook says you must obey traffic control persons, so their directions are not something the regular rules of the road can cancel out.
- C. must be obeyed if they do not conflict with the rules of the road — Adding a condition that you obey only when the direction matches the rules of the road weakens the plain must-obey instruction in the handbook.
- D. should not be obeyed on public roads — Traffic control persons work in construction zones on public roads, which is exactly where the handbook says you must obey their directions.
Remember it
Treat the traffic control person as the authority for that stretch of road, and follow the signal you actually get rather than the one you expected.