Which of the following road signs prohibits entering the intersection area if there is a traffic jam ahead, except when turning left or right?

Explanation

Marking number 3; the yellow square with a cross inside it, that is the "intersection area".

The four items in the picture are deliberately drawn from four different families to make identification harder. Number 1 is a blue circle with a red cross: no stopping at all along a stretch of road. Number 2 is a white circle with a red border and a struck-through U-turn arrow: a prohibition on U-turns. Number 4 is a red triangle with a black cross: a warning of a junction with a minor road, which only informs and prohibits nothing. Only number 3, the yellow square with a cross, defines the junction area and prohibits entering it in conditions of congestion; unless you intend to turn left or right.

The reason for the turning exception is logical too: a vehicle turning left or right leaves the junction and does not block the crossing path for long, whereas a vehicle going straight and caught in a queue stops exactly in the middle of the perpendicular flow and locks the whole junction. A junction locked at peak hour spreads rapidly to the next junctions and blocks the emergency route as well.

Worth memorising: tie the yellow colour and the square shape to "keep the junction clear".

• An absolute no-stopping sign is about standing at the kerb, not about entering a junction; it has nothing to do with congestion or the turning exception. • A U-turn prohibition removes only one specific manoeuvre and says nothing about the traffic situation ahead. • This is a warning sign and merely announces that you are approaching a junction with a minor road; warning signs create no prohibitions.

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