Turns, lanes, passing and parking
When may you turn left at a red light in California?
- Only when turning from a one-way street onto another one-way street, after stopping, if no sign prohibits it. Correct answer
- Whenever there is no oncoming traffic.
- Never; left turns on red are always prohibited.
Why
Right turns on red are the familiar case, but California also allows one kind of left turn on red: from a one-way street onto a one-way street. The logic is that you are not crossing any oncoming lane, only joining traffic that flows the same way. Even then you must stop first, check for a sign prohibiting the turn, yield to vehicles, bicyclists and pedestrians who have the green light, and look both ways before going. On a two-way street a left turn on red is never allowed, no matter how empty the road looks. And a red arrow forbids the turn entirely, in every situation.
Where this comes from
California Driver's Handbook, June 2025 edition. The correct answer is Only when turning from a one-way street onto another one-way street, after stopping, if no sign prohibits it.
The rule behind this one
Turns, lanes, passing and parking in California goes through the whole topic, with the page of the California Driver's Handbook behind every rule.
More on turns, lanes, passing and parking
- You want to pass a slow vehicle on a two-lane road. Within what distance of an intersection, bridge, tunnel, or railroad crossing is passing NOT allowed?
- In which situation may you pass another vehicle on its right?
- When you finish parallel parking, how far from the curb may your vehicle be at most?
- You are on the freeway and want to move into the next lane. How far ahead of the move should you signal?