Traffic signals — Idaho Permit Test

A steady red circular indication means stop. Come to a complete stop before you reach the stop line, the crosswalk or the intersection.

The three places are named in the order you meet them, and stopping past the first one you come to is stopping in the wrong place.

Come to a complete stop before you reach the stop line, crosswalk, or intersection

You may turn right on a steady red after stopping, and left on a steady red only onto a one-way street, unless a sign posts no turn on red.

Red means stop first, every time. What the sign changes is whether you may go at all after the stop.

You can make a turn on a red light unless posted “no turn on red.”

A flashing red indication means stop. You must come to a complete stop, yield to cross traffic or pedestrians, and then proceed when clear.

It works exactly like a stop sign, which means the stop is complete rather than a roll through.

You must come to a complete stop, yield to cross traffic or pedestrians, and then proceed when clear

A green circular indication means go, and you may proceed forward.

It is the one signal that gives the intersection to you, and it still does not give it to you alone.

A green circular indication means “go.” You may proceed forward

A yellow light means caution and warns that the signal is about to change to red. If you have not entered the intersection and can stop safely, you should do so.

Yellow is a question about whether you can stop, and the answer depends on where the car already is.

If you have not entered the intersection and can come to a safe stop, you should do so

If you are already in the intersection when the light turns yellow, you should continue moving and clear it safely.

Stopping in the middle leaves a car across the path of everyone about to get a green.

If you are already in the intersection, you should continue moving and clear it safely

A flashing circular yellow indication means caution. Slow down, look carefully for hazards, and proceed with caution.

Nobody has the right of way handed to them at a flashing yellow, so the looking is the whole of the instruction.

A flashing circular yellow indication means caution. You should slow down, look carefully for hazards, and proceed with caution

A flashing yellow arrow means turns are allowed after yielding to oncoming traffic and pedestrians in crosswalks.

The turn is permitted but not protected, so the gap in oncoming traffic is yours to judge.

The flashing yellow arrow means turns are allowed after yielding to oncoming traffic and pedestrians in crosswalks

A green circular indication means go. In the left-turn lane you must yield to oncoming traffic and pedestrians in crosswalks before turning left.

Green gives the intersection to both directions at once, and the left turn is the one that has to wait.

If you are in the left-turn lane, you must yield to oncoming traffic and pedestrians in crosswalks before turning left

You should not enter an intersection unless there is enough space on the other side for your vehicle to pass completely through, whatever the signal shows.

A car that stops halfway blocks the cross traffic when their light goes green, and the line never clears.

You should not enter the intersection unless there is sufficient space on the other side of the intersection for your vehicle to completely pass through the intersection

A doghouse signal is most commonly used to indicate protected left turns, and its yellow light shows that the protected left turn is ending.

The protection is what makes the turn safe, and the yellow is the moment it stops being there.

The yellow light indicates that the protected left turn movement is ending

Whenever a traffic signal is not functioning, treat the intersection as a four-way stop.

With no signal to give anyone priority, the only workable rule is the one everybody already knows.

Whenever a traffic signal is not functioning, treat the intersection as a four-way stop

Vertical traffic lights have red at the top, yellow in the middle and green at the bottom; horizontal lights have red on the far left, yellow in the middle and green on the far right.

The order never changes, which is what lets a driver who cannot tell the colors apart still read the signal.

Horizontal traffic lights have a red light on the far left, a yellow light in the middle, and a green light on the far right

A solid yellow arrow means the signal for the turn is changing, and if you are already in the intersection you should continue the turn and clear it safely.

It is the yellow light's rule applied to a turn, and the car already committed has to finish rather than stop.

If you are already in the intersection, you should continue the turn and clear the intersection safely

Where must a driver stop at a steady red circular signal?

Before the stop line, crosswalk or intersection. The three places are named in the order you meet them, and stopping past the first one you come to is stopping in the wrong place. July 2026 Idaho Driver's Handbook, p.55: “Come to a complete stop before you reach the stop line, crosswalk, or intersection”