Traffic Signs Class

Learn about the different types of signs you might encounter on the road.

Now let's move along and review the types of signs you will encounter on nearly every journey Regulatory Signs, Warning Signs, Informational Signs and Construction Signs. Regulatory Signs tell us what we must do. Obey them in the same way; you would obey traffic laws. They're usually black and white and rectangular. A few examples of Regulatory Signs would be speed limit signs, one way street signs and do not pass signs. Warning Signs alert drivers of what lies ahead and what to look for. They are generally yellow and black and diamond shaped. Examples of warning signs include sharp turn ahead, stop sign ahead and slippery when wet signs. Informational Signs are typically green, blue or brown. Green Information Signs provide guidance, an example would be the Signs mounted about the highway indicating the lane or lanes to use in order to follow a certain route. Blue informational signs usually indicate motors services, for example signs like these found along the highway, inform you on where to find fuel, food and lodging. Brown signs indicate public recreations and places of special interest, for example they might guide you to a state or a local park. Construction Signs are used to warn drivers of work areas along the road. These signs are exclusively orange and usually diamond shaped. They assure to reduce your speed and drive cautiously through construction zones. Finds are often double than these work areas. Knowing signs by their shape and color is essential in order for you to know what you expect as you approach them. To learn extensive list of signs and what each of them mean, check out the signs index on this DVD. Now let's take a look at the most common signals you'll see. A steady red light means you must come to a stop before the intersection. A steady yellow light means caution, red light coming up. You must stop before the intersection if you can do so safely. If you can't stop safely; proceed through the intersection cautiously before the light turns red. A steady green light means go; if it is safe to do so. Even with a green light be aware of pedestrians and other traffic within the intersection. If you encounter a green light at backed up intersection; make sure you stay out of the intersection until it is clear. If you avoid this advice; you could get stuck in a middle of an intersection while crossed traffic gets green light. Not only is blocking the intersection dangerous; it's also illegal. A flashing red light means stop before the intersection and then proceed when it is safe to do so. You should handle the signal just as you were to stop sign. A flashing yellow light indicates that you should slow down and proceed cautiously to the intersection. A green arrow showing at the same time is a red light gives you the ride up way to travel in direction of the arrow. If you approach a traffic light where the signals are working you must come to a complete stop and treat it like a stop sign. Among other signals you may encounter is the rail road crossing signal. Rail roads can present dangerous challenges if you don't approach them properly. Here are some guidelines. First and foremost you need to know rail road crossing sign means. The black and yellow circular sign warned you that you're within a few 100 ft of a rail road crossing. The white and black crossbuck sign is posted at the location of the tracks; it often includes lights that flash red and a gate that closes when a train is coming. Any time the train is approaching, you need to stop before the tracks and wait for the pass. Never stop on the tracks and never try to beat a train. Keep in mind that the speed limit is 15mph as you approach an uncontrolled real road crossing. Also vehicles carrying hazardous materials and all passenger busses must stop before crossing any rail road tracks. Pavement markings help just like signs and signals, they work to regulate traffic and it's vital that you know what you can and can't do while traveling on roadways with certain markings. Yellow lines indicate the traffic on each side of the line is traveling in opposite directions. A solid yellow line means no passing is permitted in your lane. A double solid yellow line means that there is no passing in either direction. It is legal to make a left turn across the double solid yellow lines, but only after yielding the ride up way to oncoming traffic. How ever when traveling on a road with two sets of double solid yellow lines side-by-side; you're not permitted to cross. Broken yellow lines give you the right to pass vehicles ahead of you as long as you're obeying the speed limit and you are sure it's safe to do so. White lines on a road way indicate the traffic is traveling in a same direction. Most of the time white lines will be broken so you can pass the traffic ahead of you, if it is safe to do so, as long as you obey the speed limit.