Left Turn On Red

Q: (1) In Westbank, where the traffic flows one way in both directions, is it legal to make a left hand turn on a red light (i.e. you are in between the two one way streets)

(2) Is it legal for vehicle originally behind you to pull up beside you to make a right hand turn at an intersection if there is no specific lane to do so?

A: It is legal to make a left turn on a red light from a two way street onto a one way street. I believe that British Columbia is the only province that has this law. The onus is on the driver making the left turn to yield to traffic and pedestrians facing the green light. It is the application of the law by some drivers that make it dangerous.

Red light
Section 129 (4) of the Motor Vehicle Act indicates that when a red light alone is exhibited at an intersection by a traffic control signal
b) except when a left turn permitted by this paragraph is prohibited by a sign at the intersection, the driver of a vehicle facing the red light at the intersection of not more than 2 highways, and which in obedience to it is stopped as closely as practicable to a marked crosswalk on the near side of the intersection, or if there is no marked crosswalk, as closely as practicable to the intersection, may cause the vehicle to make a left turn into a highway on which traffic is restricted to the direction(one way street) in which he or she causes the vehicle to turn, but the driver must yield the right of way to all pedestrians and vehicles lawfully proceeding as directed by the signal at the intersection

A driver may pull up your right side to make a right turn only if there it can be done on the roadway. Drivers wishing to make a right turn at an intersection are not permitted to pull up to the right of another vehicle on the shoulder to make the right turn.

Turning at intersections
Section 165 (1) of the Motor Vehicle Act indicates that if the driver of a vehicle intends to turn it to the right at an intersection, the driver must cause it to approach the intersection and then make the turn as close as practicable to the right hand curb or edge of the roadway.
(5) A person must not turn a vehicle at an intersection unless it is in the position on the highway required by this section

Constable R.A.(Richard) ASELTON
Central Okanagan Traffic Services - Media Liaison
Kelowna R.C.M.P. Detachment

This article is written by or on behalf of an outsourced columnist and does not necessarily reflect the views of Castanet.