BC Class 5&7
Chapter 3: Signs, signals and road markings
(Learn to Drive Smart, March 2026 edition)
This chapter is a reference to the signs, lights and painted lines that organize traffic.
Signs. Any sign can be read three ways: by its shape, by its colour, and by what is written on it. Knowing these three lets you work out a sign you have never seen. Regulatory signs state the law; ignoring one is an offence under the Motor Vehicle Act. Most warning signs are yellow diamonds. School and school-crosswalk signs are fluorescent yellow-green. A playground zone limit of 30 km/h applies every day from dawn to dusk; a school zone limit applies from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on school days; the sign or the tab under it may add conditions or other hours. In construction areas you must obey both the signs and the traffic-control person. At railway crossings you must always yield to trains.
Signals. Lane control signals above the road show which lanes are open. At a steady red light, once you have stopped completely, you may turn right, or left onto a one-way street, as long as no sign prohibits it. A flashing green light is controlled by pedestrians.
Road markings. Yellow lines separate traffic going in opposite directions, and white lines separate lanes going the same way. Whether you may pass depends on the line on your side: a broken line allows it when safe, a solid line does not. A white diamond marks a reserved lane. Driving over freshly painted, wet markings is illegal.
Concept cards in this chapter
Sign shapes and colours
- Q-0001You reach the sign shown at an intersection with clear visibility in every direction and no other traffic. What must you do?
- Q-0002What does the sign shown require of you?
- Q-0003A yellow diamond-shaped sign appears beside the road. Before reading any words on it, what can you already tell?
- Q-0004Why are school and school crosswalk signs made fluorescent yellow-green rather than ordinary yellow?
- Q-0015You see the sign shown. What is ahead?
Regulatory signs
- Q-0002What does the sign shown require of you?
- Q-0007You are on a road posted with the sign shown. Heavy rain has cut visibility and the pavement is streaming with water. What does the sign tell you about your speed?
- Q-0017What distinguishes a regulatory sign from a warning sign?
- Q-0018The sign shown is most often mounted where?
- Q-0019A sign requires winter tires or chains. When does that requirement apply?
Warning signs, markers, construction and railway signs
- Q-0008You see the marker shown. How does it differ from the warning signs around it?
- Q-0009You are stopped at a railway crossing with gates. The train has passed and the gates begin to lift. When may you proceed?
- Q-0012You enter a work zone where a traffic-control person is directing vehicles in a way that conflicts with the lane markings. What should you do?
- Q-0013The sign shown appears before a bend that also carries a smaller sign reading 40. You are on a road posted at 80 km/h. What does the 40 mean?
- Q-0014The marker shown is mounted on a bridge pier in your lane. What is it telling you?
School, playground and crosswalk signs
- Q-0004Why are school and school crosswalk signs made fluorescent yellow-green rather than ordinary yellow?
- Q-0005It is 11 a.m. on a Sunday in July and you pass the sign shown. What speed limit applies?
- Q-0006A school zone sign shows 50 km/h with no tab underneath. When does that limit apply?
- Q-0035You approach a school crosswalk where a crossing guard has stepped onto the road and raised a hand, although no pedestrian is on the crosswalk yet. What should you do?
- Q-0036At a pedestrian-activated crosswalk, the overhead light begins to flash as you approach. What does that require?
Lane use, turn control, reserved lane and parking signs
- Q-0010You are in a designated left-turn lane and realize you wanted to go straight. You are already inside the intersection. What are you required to do?
- Q-0011What is painted on the road surface to mark a reserved lane?
- Q-0021Where are turn control signs mounted, and what weight do they carry?
- Q-0022A parking space is marked with the disabled parking sign. Who may park there?
- Q-0023What can happen if you park where a sign prohibits it?
Traffic lights: solid, arrow and flashing
- Q-0101The light turns green but a vehicle is still stopped in the middle of the intersection. What does the green light entitle you to do?
- Q-0102The light turns yellow as you approach and you are travelling too close to stop safely. What should you do?
- Q-0103You are stopped at a steady red light and want to turn right. A sign at the intersection says nothing about turns. May you turn?
- Q-0104A traffic light shows a flashing green. What does it mean in B.C.?
- Q-0105You arrive at an intersection showing a flashing red light. What is required?
Lane control signals
- Q-0109A red X shows over the lane you are in. What must you do?
- Q-0110The lane control signals over every lane are flashing yellow. What should you do?
- Q-0111You see double broken yellow lines on both sides of a lane. What does that tell you?
- Q-0129Why do lane control signals exist at all, when lane markings already show where the lanes are?
Yellow and white lines
- Q-0111You see double broken yellow lines on both sides of a lane. What does that tell you?
- Q-0112There is a yellow line immediately to your left. What does that tell you about the road?
- Q-0113The centre line shows a solid yellow line on your side and a broken yellow line on the other side. May you pass?
- Q-0114What do double solid yellow lines mean?
- Q-0115A centre lane is bounded by broken yellow lines with solid yellow lines inside them. What is that lane for?
Crosswalks, stop lines and other road markings
- Q-0117Where should you stop in relation to a stop line at an intersection?
- Q-0118A crosswalk has lights set into the pavement that are illuminated. What does that indicate?
- Q-0119How is a bicycle lane marked on the road surface, and which way do cyclists in it travel?
- Q-0120A painted island is marked on the roadway ahead of you. What should you do?
- Q-0122The lane you are in has an arrow painted on the surface showing a left turn only, but you intended to go straight. What should you do?
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