Comments on: Turning right on red has shades of grey

By: John

John — Tue, 26 Feb 2013 21:49:01 +0000

Only if there is a sign saying “No Right Turn On Red”. Otherwise, as long as the driver comes to a complete stop and then proceeds safely, he is allowed to turn right on a red light, even if the left turn arrow is lit.

By: John

John — Tue, 26 Feb 2013 16:26:24 +0000

Sorry, you are mistaken. Ontario HTA:

Left turn, at intersection

(6) Where a driver or operator of a vehicle intends to turn to the left into an intersecting highway, he or she shall, where the highway on which he or she is driving has marked lanes for traffic, approach the intersection within the left-hand lane provided for the use of traffic moving in the direction in which his or her vehicle is proceeding or, where it has no such marked lanes, by keeping immediately to the right of the centre line of the highway and he or she shall make the left turn by entering the intersection to the right of the centre line or its extension and by leaving the intersection in the left-hand lane provided for the use of traffic moving in the direction in which his or her vehicle is proceeding where the lane is marked or, where no such lane is marked, by passing immediately to the right of the centre line of the intersecting highway. R.S.O. 1990, c. H.8, s. 141 (6).

By: CKHY

CKHY — Mon, 25 Feb 2013 17:55:02 +0000

Just drive defensively. Beware of all other cars. Treat them as if they do not know how to drive and will shift to your lane at any time. So, it will be much safer to not make a right turn in that situation. Even though you maybe right, but wasting time dealing with insurance, police and remain at the scene of the accident are just too much trouble.

By: C PATTERSON

C PATTERSON — Mon, 25 Feb 2013 17:02:17 +0000

Dave in response to my comment obviously has no common sense. RED means STOP. GREEN means GO. I guess you were too dumb in primary school to understand that…feel sorry for you pal.

By: Dave

Dave — Mon, 25 Feb 2013 16:18:31 +0000

The police are correct. When you are making a left turn on an advanced green, you are entitled to the first lane only. Drivers who swerve through the first lane and into the second as if they own the entire road should be ticketed.

By: Don Tai

Don Tai — Mon, 25 Feb 2013 16:17:24 +0000

I would have to agree with the driver examiner in this case. If both the left and right turning drivers do their part and follow the law, then no one gets into a crash. However, we are dealing with human beings here and we all make mistakes. If a left turner states he turned into his lane and then moved into the rightmost curb lane, but the right turner turned and hit him, there is dispute as to who made the error. The left turner could also state that the right turner turned wide and hit him. It is always safer for the right turner to wait until there is no possible chance of a crash with the left turning vehicle. I side with the driver examiner’s decision.

By: Alison

Alison — Mon, 25 Feb 2013 15:25:26 +0000

I always thought it was illegal to change lanes in an intersection? If I’m turning right on a red and somebody decides at the last second to change lanes while making that advanced green turn in an intersection, especially without using their directional signal, I’d have to argue in court that they were at fault. I usually let the oncoming traffic in an advanced green go before I make my turn though. Clearly there is confusion over this issue.

By: C PATTERSON

C PATTERSON — Mon, 25 Feb 2013 14:01:08 +0000

The test centre supervisor is 100% CORRECT. The cops are WRONG. You are asking the cops, some of the biggest traffic violators, to tell you the rules? If there were more of these test centre supervisors, the roads would be safer, as when I received my training and licence 24 years ago. If you have a RED light, it means you DO NOT HAVE THE RIGHT OF WAY. You may turn right on a red after giving way to ALL OPPOSING traffic and ONLY if it is SAFE to do so. It is NOT safe to rely on another driver’s unpredictability, therefore it is not safe to turn. Also, an advanced green for THEM is just that…an ADVANCED green so they can turn left while all opposing traffic (YOU) IS STOPPED AT A RED LIGHT. ONLY if there is NO OPPOSING traffic can you legally go. Driving laws are based on COMMON SNENSE…too bad most people don’t seem to have any.

By: Albin

Albin — Mon, 25 Feb 2013 12:18:42 +0000

The fact is if a driver making a green lighted left turn strays into the right lane and hits a red lighted right-turner, the left turner has the legal right of way and if there’s a collision it’s the right-turner’s liability premium that’s going up. Green lighted left turners have a choice of lanes unless there are lane markers for them, and they may have good reason to be turning into a driveway or parking lot near the corner. It’s the red lighted right turner who has the legal and common sense obligation not to get in the way of anybody in any lane.

By: Rob

Rob — Sun, 24 Feb 2013 15:42:05 +0000

With the scenario mentioned by this student drive, there is one factor that has not been stipulated. They mention that there was a car turning left from the opposite direction but was all of the traffic from the opposite direction going (was it an advanced green flashing light or was it a left turn arrow.) If it was a left turn arrow, and the traffic going in the same direction of the student driver had a left turn arrow at the same time, then the student should not have entered the intersection. The HTA act also says that when you approach a light controlled intersection, you can only proceed on the direction of the green arrow. If his direction had a left turn arrow, then he was not allowed to proceed yet. The HTA doesn’t specifically say he couldn/t turn right, but if there was no right turn arrow and only a left turn arrow, then he could only turn left.