Left turn on green
Traffic lights · Left turn · Alberta Class 5 road test
Unprotected left turn: wait in the intersection for oncoming traffic
Watch the interactive demoHow to drive it
Left turn on green (unprotected) + an oncoming right-turner + two oncoming cars going straight + a pedestrian at the west crosswalk + a car behind waiting at the stop line
In the correct demo, you yield to:
- Oncoming vehicle going straight — Left turn on green (unprotected): yield to oncoming traffic going straight. A left turn on a plain green has no protected right-of-way; cutting in front of oncoming traffic causes a head-on collision, and you would be fully at fault.
- Oncoming vehicle turning right — Left turn on green (unprotected): yield to oncoming traffic turning right. An oncoming right-turner facing a green also has the right-of-way; turning in front of it is failing to yield.
Common mistakes
Hesitated to enter the intersection on green
Road test: 10 points — D2 Stops too far back
Nothing happened this time, but it still counts against you. For an unprotected left turn on green, the first car should pull into the intersection to wait (about half the car into the intersection, front wheels pointing straight ahead) and turn when there's a gap in oncoming traffic or the light changes; waiting behind the stop line loses the chance to turn and makes the cars behind wait longer too.
Watch this mistake →Related scenarios
- Left turn on a green arrowProtected left turn; the oncoming car turns left at the same time
- Left turn on green · clearing on the light changeWait in the intersection until the light changes; once oncoming traffic stops, clear the intersection