Must You Stop in the Left-Turn Waiting Area When Turning Left While Driving?
2 Answers
When the left-turn light is green and you have already crossed the stop line into the waiting area, even if the left-turn signal turns red at this point, you can still make a normal left turn without it being considered a violation. Even stopping is not a violation. However, if you stop and opposing vehicles are already in a state of being allowed to proceed, then making a left turn at this point would be a violation. More details are as follows: 1. The so-called "waiting area" is, as the name suggests, an area for waiting to turn. For example, when preparing to make a left turn, if the left-turn signal is red but the straight signal turns green, you can then enter the waiting area (but you must not go beyond the waiting area indicator line) and wait until the left-turn signal turns green before making the left turn. 2. This method is designed to improve road traffic capacity. Each left-turn signal can allow three to four more vehicles to pass, depending on the size of the waiting area, possibly even more. At intersections with traffic police directing traffic, even if there is no marked waiting area, the traffic police may gesture to direct vehicles preparing to turn left to move forward and wait to turn based on traffic congestion conditions.
After driving for over a decade, I've noticed that left-turn waiting areas aren't mandatory at all intersections. You can only enter and wait when the straight-going traffic light is green; if it's red and you force your way in, it's an immediate 6-point deduction without question! The main purpose is to improve turning efficiency—during peak hours, five or six more cars can get through per light cycle. But you have to check if the road markings are clear; last night in the rain, I almost overshot it. Remember, your car's front mustn't cross the white pedestrian line, or it's also a violation. New drivers should pay attention to navigation prompts, as some older urban areas don't have this zone at all.
