You are about to make a left turn. Who do you have to give way?

Explanation

To both oncoming vehicles — the tram and the car beside it.

The light is green, you have signalled left, and two vehicles are approaching from the opposite direction: the red-and-white tram on the rails and the light-coloured car to its left. Both are moving in a direction their light has permitted, so both take precedence over you.

The rule has two layers and you must see them together. First layer: a driver turning left is obliged to give way to vehicles coming from the opposite direction going straight or turning right. Second layer: when the lights permit the tram and the non-rail vehicle to move at the same time, the tram takes precedence regardless of its direction of travel. Adding the two means you cannot ignore either of the two oncoming vehicles.

Safety reason: a left turn cuts across the paths of both, and the tram is the most dangerous of them, because it has no possibility of deviating; the only thing it can do is brake, and the braking distance of a loaded tram runs to dozens of metres. A driver who turns thinking the way is clear has usually underestimated the tram's speed and distance.

Worth memorising: in a left turn, "the oncoming flow" means all the oncoming vehicles, not only the one that catches the eye. The exam trap is the options "only the tram" and "neither", which remove one of the threats.

• It is true that the tram takes precedence, but "only" is wrong; the oncoming car is also moving on a green light and the left turn cuts across its path too. • "Neither" means treating green as absolute priority; green permits you to turn, but does not permit you to cross the oncoming flow.

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