This sign means?
- Do not drive through the intersection ✓
- Through traffic permitted
- You may proceed through intersection, if clear
- Traffic signal ahead
Answer: A. Do not drive through the intersection
This sign means you must not drive through the intersection.
Why this is the answer
The handbook puts signs of this kind in the regulatory group, and says these signs give a direction that must be obeyed. It also explains that a red circle with a line through it means the activity shown inside the ring is not allowed. Putting those two points together, a prohibition sign about driving through an intersection tells you that movement is not permitted, and as a regulatory sign it is an order rather than advice. The passages on yield signs, stop signs and flashing red beacons describe how to enter an intersection when you are allowed to, so they don't fit a sign that forbids the movement.
Why the other answers are wrong
- B. Through traffic permitted — This reads the sign as permission for through traffic, which is the opposite of a regulatory sign that forbids the movement.
- C. You may proceed through intersection, if clear — Proceeding when the way is clear is what the handbook says to do at a yield sign or a flashing red beacon, not what a sign prohibiting the movement tells you.
- D. Traffic signal ahead — A signal ahead would be a warning about something coming up, while this sign gives a direction that must be obeyed about the intersection itself.
Remember it
First spot which action the sign shows, then check whether a red circle or slash cancels it. If the action is crossed out, the answer is that you must not do it.