If a traffic signal is green, but traffic is blocking the intersection, what should you do?
- Partially enter the intersection, as allowed by traffic.
- Wait and do not enter the intersection until your vehicle can get completely across. ✓
- Drive around the traffic on the shoulder to help ease the congestion.
Answer: B. Wait and do not enter the intersection until your vehicle can get completely across.
Wait and do not enter the intersection until your vehicle can get completely across.
Why this is the answer
The handbook says even with a green light you should not start across the intersection if vehicles are blocking your pathway. It also says a solid green means go only if you have enough space, and that you should not enter if you cannot get completely across before the light turns red. Another section says it is against the law to stop or block an intersection when there is not enough room to cross completely. Waiting keeps you from being stuck in the intersection.
Why the other answers are wrong
- A. Partially enter the intersection, as allowed by traffic. — Partly entering puts your vehicle into the blocked intersection, and the handbook says not to start across when vehicles block your pathway.
- C. Drive around the traffic on the shoulder to help ease the congestion. — Using the shoulder to get around congestion is not supported by the passages, which tell you to wait until you can completely cross rather than ease congestion.
Remember it
If the space ahead is not clear, treat a green light as a wait signal.
Official handbook: California Driver Handbook (DL 600), Section 6: Navigating the Roads, p. 24