Question about making left/right turns...

[FerrariEnzo]

Ive almost get side swiped many times over my 14 years of driving and would like to clarify if im right about this.

Ive seen many people doing this and i find it incorrectly and would like someone to correct me.

As indicate in the pic above, this is incorrect?
First Pic



This is the corrct way to make the turn?
Second Pic


If im car A and car B does this turn and hits me, car B is responsible for any damage?
Last Pic

and as far as I can remember from my road test and computer test, if both car A and B arrives at the same time, person make right hand turn gets the right of way, correct



Edit * why doesnt the pic show up???

[Alby]

i believe the proper way of turning is your pic #2. the drivers making the turn should respectively turn to the lane closest to them. correct me if i'm wrong, but if pic #1 happened, both should be at fault. if pic #3 happened, B would be at fault.

some other factors would include stop signs and traffic light and the whole situation changes.

[TheNewGirl]

#2 is correct. #3 is very common but illegal. #1 is both illegal and stupid.

You're supposed to turn into the nearest lane (unless there's multiple turning lanes in which case you turn into your designated lane) and THEN signal and change lanes again once you're clear of the intersection.

And yes at an intersection that is uncontrolled, the person turning right always goes first.

[Dragon-88]

A always has the right of way.. So car B must wait until safe to turn left throught the intersection.. If they were to cross paths car B would be at fault.

[TOS'd]

I hate when I'm car A and I signal to turn right. Car B then turns left since there was enough time for him to do so, but then a Car C behind him feels hes allowed to follow Car B in turning, even though by this time I would be at the intersection about to turn. And its even worse when we the cross road is a 1 lane road.

[valent|n0]

even worse they honk cause they think they have the right of way ..

[Soundy]

Car A has the right of way... but Car A is also *required* to turn into the nearest lane. If B turns into the left lane and Car A swing wide and hits him, I'd expect at least half the blame would be assigned to A for an illegal lane change.

[FerrariEnzo]

yea i figures Pic #2 is the correct... but it really bugs the hell out of me when people making turns dont even shoulder check and turn into the lane they are not suppose to...

Ive encountered many people who did this and just gave me the finger...


Thanx guys.. now that i got more confidence i dont have to worry about these idiots... besides.. my car should use a new paint job!! haha

[gars]

You still need to worry about these idiots. Just because they are wrong, doesn't mean you won't be found at fault as well. As well - without a proper witness - ICBC might just assume you drove into their lane - and because you were turning left, they will put more blame on you.

[asdfpic]

when saying they always have right of way, would this scenario be an exception?
-car B has a left turn light, would it make a difference if car A was there first? or should car A still yield for car B since they have left turn signal

[TheNewGirl]

Originally Posted by asdfpic

when saying they always have right of way, would this scenario be an exception?
-car B has a left turn light, would it make a difference if car A was there first? or should car A still yield for car B since they have left turn signal

If it's a controlled intersection, you can only turn right on red IF there is no traffic. If car B had a left turn signal they would indeed have right of way.

[gars]

If there was a left turn light, Car A needs to yield to Car B. That said - if Car B hits Car A while there was a left turn light - ICBC could still say the collision was avoidable.

[PuYang]

if car B has a left turn light. Car A should have a RED light. therefore, car B has the right of way. car A is REQUIRED to be clear to turn right on a red light.

and as gars mentioned above, things dont always go as planned. my bro got hit by a woman turning right and entered his lane after he turned left. she hit the back passenger side fender, and ended up being 50/50.

EDIT: wow, by the time i finished typing, 2 people already answered the question lol.

[Phil@rise]

Too many people are idiots and don't follow example B. It annoys the hell out of me and its so simple to remember. If your turning right turn into the right lane and if your turning left turn into the left lane.
Another one that down right dangerous and I've been seeing alot of is on comming traffic attempting to turn left when I slow down to make my right cutting me off on my green.
This happened to me a few times in the past couple months, most recently a student driver with instructor did it.

[gars]

In the end - there are 2 things:

Did you have right of way?

and

Was the resulting collision avoidable?

Just because you had right of way, doesn't mean you should have kept on going. If you were turning left/right, and you see another car coming, possibly causing a collision, you should not go. Just the same as if you see somebody jaywalking - doesn't mean you are automatically allowed to hit him/her. ICBC will look at both factors - but since in this situation, both parties are turning - they should both check to see if the way was clear before turning.

[zulutango]

You must enter the lane closest to you. Left turn from centre lane enters centre lane on new road. Right turn from curb lane enters the curb lane on the new road....then you switch to the next lane when it is clear to do so.

[Soundy]

Originally Posted by zulutango

You must enter the lane closest to you. Left turn from centre lane enters centre lane on new road. Right turn from curb lane enters the curb lane on the new road....then you switch to the next lane when it is clear to do so.

I can think of one instance, though, where this could cause a problem: Pitt Meadows, McMyn eastbound onto Harris northbound:

http://goo.gl/maps/Vznm

Strictly letter-of-the-law, if your turn left into the left-most lane, you're then trapped by a solid line and have no choice but to turn left onto Lougheed Hwy.

[johny]

I was deducted points on my drivers test for this. turning right into the right hand lane. while someone was turning left into the left lane. I was told I should have waited "just in case they crossed over into my lane".... pretty lame to lose points when I did nothing legally wrong.


in 1 and 3, both drivers would probbaly be partly at fault.

[johny]

Originally Posted by Soundy

I can think of one instance, though, where this could cause a problem: Pitt Meadows, McMyn eastbound onto Harris northbound:

http://goo.gl/maps/Vznm

Strictly letter-of-the-law, if your turn left into the left-most lane, you're then trapped by a solid line and have no choice but to turn left onto Lougheed Hwy.

this is poor design, they should make the first 50 feet or so dashed so you can get out after a turn.

[sebberry]

Originally Posted by johny

this is poor design, they should make the first 50 feet or so dashed so you can get out after a turn.

They should, but they don't. I was making such a turn here once, got stuck in a lane like that and before I knew it I was in Kansas!

I would like to see much more enforcement of 161 (1) and (2) violations.

Instead of the safety squad driving into watermelons on TV, perhaps they should draw attention to this sloppy and inconsiderate action.

Or maybe ICBC's (somewhat reluctant) demystifier of car insurance can say something about this

[goo3]

Originally Posted by johny

I was deducted points on my drivers test for this. turning right into the right hand lane. while someone was turning left into the left lane. I was told I should have waited "just in case they crossed over into my lane".... pretty lame to lose points when I did nothing legally wrong.


in 1 and 3, both drivers would probbaly be partly at fault.

I have to agree with the tester. There's really no reason not to stagger your turns, even though it's not technically required. There's the law, but that's just the starting point. It's not meant to cover every dynamic scenario in real life. You need road sense on top of that as well to decrease your risk of getting into an accident.

[zulutango]

I also agree with goo3. I teach to wait till the other vehicle moves because it is safer to do so, shows you are anticipating possible problems...and have probably driven in the real world where the other driver cutting in happens all the time. Expect the worst and when it hapens you will not be surprised and you will have an "out".

[sebberry]

When I'm making a right turn against a red light onto a road with at least two lanes of traffic in the direction I am turning, I typically wait until both lanes are clear.

While I always turn into the curb lane, too often I see people making lane changes just before, or in the intersection. Occasionally I get honked at for not making the turn but I just remind myself that he's the one that will eventually be hit in an intersection, not me.


While it isn't illegal to make a lane change in an intersection, most intersection lane changes begin with the driver crossing the solid white lane divider on approach to the intersection.

If the police would enforce this sloppy driving with as much enthusiasm and tenacity as they do speed, we'd have safer roads. 92 in an 80 zone won't in itself cause a collision, but 80 in an 80 zone while making a lane change in an intersection can quite easily kill someone.

[gars]

I do that as well - better safe than sorry - wait till it's clear.

That said - not many intersections in Vancouver have solid white lines close to the intersection. So it isn't illegal to make lane changes right before the intersection. AND - according to the MVA - I don't think it's illegal to change lanes IN the intersection either - does anybody know?

[Soundy]

It's not.