Signs, signals and pavement markings
You are about to turn left on a green arrow when the arrow changes to yellow. What does the yellow arrow tell you?
- The protection of the green arrow is ending, so be prepared to stop if you are turning that way. Correct answer
- You must come to a full stop before turning, as you would at a flashing red light.
- The lane is closing, so you must move out of it before the intersection.
Why
A green arrow gives you a protected movement in its direction. The yellow arrow is the warning that this protection is about to end: if you mean to turn the way the arrow points, get ready to stop. A steady yellow plays a similar warning role for the whole signal: it tells you the light is about to turn red. The other two answers borrow meanings from other lights. A flashing red light means the same as a STOP sign: stop, yield and go when safe. Moving out of a lane is what a steady yellow X means on the lane-use control lights that hang above some highways. Treat the yellow arrow the way you treat a steady yellow. Both warn that the light is about to change, and the right response to both is to be ready to stop.
Where this comes from
New York State Driver's Manual (MV-21), April 2026 version. The correct answer is The protection of the green arrow is ending, so be prepared to stop if you are turning that way.
- Chapter 4 / Traffic Control › Traffic Signals › Traffic Lights › Yellow Arrow, page 31
- Chapter 4 / Traffic Control › Traffic Signals › Traffic Lights › Steady Yellow, page 31
- Chapter 4 / Traffic Control › Traffic Signals › Traffic Lights › Flashing Red, page 31
- Chapter 4 / Traffic Control › Traffic Signals › Lane Use Control Lights, page 31
More on signs, signals and pavement markings
- On a highway with lane-use control lights above the pavement, a steady yellow X lights up over the lane you are driving in. What should you do?
- The center of a two-way road is marked with double solid lines. You want to turn left into a driveway on the other side. What does the manual say?
- A solid white edge line marks where the travel lane ends and the shoulder begins. When may you drive across it?
- A solid line and a broken line run side by side between you and oncoming traffic. The broken line is on your side. What does this allow?