When you see a flashing yellow light at an intersection, you should:
- Yield to all traffic before crossing the intersection.
- Stop, then enter the intersection when it is safe to do so.
- Slow down and cross the intersection carefully. ✓
Answer: C. Slow down and cross the intersection carefully.
Slow down and cross the intersection carefully when you see a flashing yellow light.
Why this is the answer
The California Driver Handbook says a flashing yellow traffic signal is a warning to proceed with caution. It tells you to slow down and stay alert, and it specifically says you do not need to stop. That matches the choice to slow down and cross carefully. The handbook treats a flashing red light differently: there you must stop first and then go when it is safe. So the flashing yellow signal calls for caution and attention, not a full stop or a general yield to all traffic.
Why the other answers are wrong
- A. Yield to all traffic before crossing the intersection. — A flashing yellow light does not require you to yield to all traffic before crossing; the handbook only says to slow down and be alert as you proceed with caution.
- B. Stop, then enter the intersection when it is safe to do so. — Stopping and then entering when safe describes a flashing red light, which the handbook says means STOP; a flashing yellow light does not require a stop.
Remember it
Flashing yellow warns you to slow and look; flashing red means stop first.