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Louisiana driving lesson · Intersections & Right-of-Way

Right-of-way rules

A 3-minute lesson from the Louisiana course. Read the rules and examples, follow the handbook page references, and check your understanding before you move on.

Read time
3 minutes
Course unit
Intersections & Right-of-Way
Checkpoint questions
6
Source pages
93, 98, 99

Right-of-way rules tell you who must yield. They never give anyone the right to go. Intersections are among the most dangerous places on the road, so never insist on your right-of-way; if others ignore the rules, let them go.

Know the rule

The law says who must yield the right-of-way; it doesn't give anyone the right-of-way. The rules apply to all road users, including bicyclists.

Handbook p. 98 ↗

Know the rule

At a yield sign, slow to a reasonable speed and stop if required. Go only when you won't interfere with approaching traffic.

Handbook p. 98 ↗

Know the rule

A driver turning left must yield to oncoming traffic, including bicyclists.

Handbook p. 98 ↗

You must yield the right-of-way:

  • To pedestrians legally crossing in a marked or unmarked crosswalk
  • To people using a guide dog or a white cane, with or without a red tip
  • At an uncontrolled intersection, to vehicles already in it
  • At a 'T' intersection, to vehicles on the through road
  • On an unpaved road meeting a paved road, to paved-road traffic
  • When pulling back onto the road after parking
  • When entering from a driveway, alley or roadside, to traffic on the main road
Handbook p. 98 ↗

Know the rule

At controlled and 4-way stop intersections, when two vehicles arrive at the same time, the driver on the left yields to the vehicle on the right.

Handbook p. 99 ↗
Four-way stop same-time rule
Same-time rule: yield to the vehicle on your right

Know the rule

If a traffic light malfunctions, the intersection becomes a 4-way stop.

Handbook p. 99 ↗

Know the rule

Having the right-of-way doesn't guarantee your safety; aggressive drivers may try to beat the red light. Signal, slow down, and be prepared to stop.

Handbook p. 93 ↗

Put it into practice

You and another car reach a 4-way stop at the same moment, and the other car is on your right. You're the driver on the left, so you yield and let it go first.

Check your understanding

Read the question, decide on an answer, then open it to check the explanation. These are Roadwise study questions based on the source handbook.

A driver making a left turn must yield the right-of-way to:
  1. All oncoming traffic, including bicyclists
  2. Only oncoming cars, not bicyclists
  3. No one, since left-turners always have priority
  4. Only pedestrians, not vehicles

Answer: All oncoming traffic, including bicyclists

Left-turning drivers must yield to all oncoming traffic, and bicyclists are explicitly included.

Handbook p. 98 ↗
How should a driver treat a pedestrian using a guide dog or a white cane?
  1. Yield only if they are in a marked crosswalk
  2. Always yield the right-of-way to them
  3. Sound the horn to alert them and proceed
  4. Treat them the same as any jaywalker

Answer: Always yield the right-of-way to them

The handbook requires always yielding to pedestrians using a guide dog or white cane, regardless of location.

Handbook p. 98 ↗
At an uncontrolled intersection where another vehicle is already present, who has the right-of-way?
  1. The vehicle going straight
  2. The vehicle on the wider road
  3. The vehicle already in it
  4. Whoever signals first

Answer: The vehicle already in it

A vehicle already in an uncontrolled intersection has the right-of-way over one arriving after it.

Handbook p. 98 ↗
At a T-intersection, who must yield?
  1. The driver on the through road must always yield
  2. Whoever is turning right always has priority
  3. The driver turning left
  4. The driver on the road that ends

Answer: The driver on the road that ends

Traffic on the road that ends at the T must yield to the continuous through road.

Handbook p. 98 ↗
At a 4-way stop, two vehicles arrive at the same time. Who has the right-of-way?
  1. The vehicle on the right
  2. The vehicle on the left
  3. The vehicle going straight
  4. Whichever vehicle is turning

Answer: The vehicle on the right

When two vehicles arrive simultaneously at a 4-way stop, the one on the left yields to the one on the right.

Handbook p. 99 ↗
When entering a road from a driveway or alley, you must:
  1. Proceed immediately since you have priority
  2. Yield to vehicles already on the main road
  3. Only yield to pedestrians, not vehicles
  4. Only yield if a stop sign is posted

Answer: Yield to vehicles already on the main road

Traffic entering from a driveway or alley must yield to vehicles already using the main roadway.

Handbook p. 99 ↗
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