We are obliged to give way to

Explanation

To both the tram driver and the lorry driver.

At this junction there is neither a traffic light nor a priority sign; so it is an uncontrolled junction of equal-status roads and you must apply two rules simultaneously.

First rule: at an equal-status junction a rail vehicle has precedence over non-rail vehicles, no matter which side it comes from. The red tram on the left is running on rails that pass right in front of your car, so you must let it go first. Second rule: among non-rail vehicles priority belongs to the right; the blue lorry approaches the junction from the right, so it too takes precedence over you. Adding the two rules together gives both drivers.

The safety reason for the tram's priority is technical: a tram has no steering and cannot change its path, and its stopping distance on steel rails is several times that of an ordinary car; if it had to brake for every car, both a collision would occur and the standing passengers inside the carriage would be injured. And the common trap in this question is exactly to recall only one of the two rules and to miss half the danger. Before moving, check both sides of the junction and the rails separately.

• It is true that the tram has precedence, but this option ignores the lorry on the right; at an equal-status junction the "priority to the right" rule applies as well. • The lorry really does come from the right and you must give way to it, but this option removes the rail vehicle's precedence; at an equal-status junction the tram takes precedence over you.

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