Right of way — Colorado Permit Test

The law states who must yield the right-of-way, but it does not give anyone the right-of-way, even if your traffic signal is green.

Right of way is something you give, never something you take. A driver who believes they have it stops looking, which is when it goes wrong.

The law states who must yield the right-of-way, but it does not give anyone the right-of-way

You must yield to pedestrians, bicyclists and other drivers who are already in an intersection you are approaching.

Whoever is already inside cannot get out of your way. Everything in the intersection has to clear before anything else enters.

You must yield the right-of-way to pedestrians, bicyclists, and other drivers who are already in an intersection you are approaching

Pedestrians have the right-of-way at all intersections and crosswalks, and you must come to a complete stop and let the person pass safely.

A person on foot loses every collision. The rule is absolute because there is no version of this where the car comes off worse.

Pedestrians have the right-of-way at all intersections and crosswalks

Do not assume that pedestrians can hear or see you, your vehicle, or any crossing signal, because some are deaf, hard of hearing or blind.

You can see them, which makes it feel as though they can see you. Some of them cannot, and they are relying on you entirely.

Do not assume that pedestrians can hear or see you and/or your vehicle or any visual or audible crossing signals as some pedestrians may be deaf, hard of hearing, deaf-blind or blind.

Most blind or deaf-blind people are easily recognized by the white cane they carry or by their guide dog.

It is the one cue you get, and it is easy to miss at a distance. Seeing either one means stopping and waiting rather than edging forward.

Most blind or deaf-blind people are easily recognized by the white cane they carry and/or by their guide dog

Bicycles on the road are considered vehicles and have many of the same rights and responsibilities as motor vehicles.

Treating a rider as traffic rather than as an obstacle is what makes their movements predictable to you and yours predictable to them.

Bicycles on the road are considered vehicles and have many of the same rights and responsibilities as motor vehicles

Drivers must yield to bicyclists in a designated bike lane when merging with or crossing that bike lane to turn.

Turning across a bike lane puts your side into the path of somebody going straight on. They have nowhere to go and no time to stop.

Drivers must yield the right-of-way to bicyclists in a designated bike lane when merging with or crossing a bike lane to turn

Bicyclists riding on a sidewalk or crosswalk have the same rights and responsibilities as pedestrians.

A rider on the sidewalk is moving at walking speed among people on foot, so the rules that protect walkers protect them too.

Bicyclists riding on a sidewalk or crosswalk have the same rights and responsibilities as pedestrians

What does Colorado law say about having the right-of-way?

The law says who must yield, not who has it. Right of way is something you give, never something you take. A driver who believes they have it stops looking, which is when it goes wrong. Colorado Driver Handbook, p.11: “The law states who must yield the right-of-way, but it does not give anyone the right-of-way”