Traffic signal lights — Tennessee Permit Test

Standard traffic lights are red, yellow and green, from top to bottom.

Knowing the order helps when the sun glares on the lens. You can tell which lamp is lit by where it sits.

Standard traffic lights are red, yellow and green, from top to bottom respectively.

On a green light, go only if the intersection is clear, and yield to pedestrians and vehicles still in the intersection when the light changes.

A driver who ran the yellow may still be crossing when you get green. Pulling out puts you into their side.

You must yield to pedestrians and vehicles still in the intersection at light change.

On a red light, stop behind the crosswalk or stop line.

Stopping past the line leaves your front end in the crosswalk, right where people walk on their signal.

RED: Stop behind crosswalk or stop line.

Unless a sign says otherwise, you may turn right on red after a complete stop when no pedestrians or cross traffic are present.

The red still means stop first. Rolling through to turn can hit a walker stepping off the curb.

Unless otherwise posted, you may turn right on red after coming to a complete stop and when no pedestrians or cross traffic are present.

When the light turns yellow, the red signal comes right after it: adjust your speed and stop if it is safe to do so.

Speeding up to beat the yellow can meet a driver who jumps the green. The crash happens in the middle of the intersection.

You must stop if it is safe to do so.

If you are already in the intersection when the yellow light comes on, do not stop, but continue cautiously through.

Stopping in the middle leaves you blocking cross traffic when their light turns green.

comes on, do not stop, but continue cautiously through the intersection.

Tennessee law only requires the yellow light to be shown for a minimum of 3 seconds before the red.

The yellow may be short. Counting on extra time to get through can leave you in the intersection on red.

Tennessee law only requires the yellow light to be exhibited for a minimum of three seconds before the red light.

On a standard vertical traffic light, which color is on top?

The red lamp. Knowing the order helps when the sun glares on the lens. You can tell which lamp is lit by where it sits. Tennessee Comprehensive Driver License Manual, p.41: “Standard traffic lights are red, yellow and green, from top to bottom respectively.”