Beginning Tuesday, October 2, the City of Salina Public Works Department will be upgrading the signals at Ninth Street and Magnolia Road. The new feature of this intersection will be a flashing yellow arrow for left turns, similar to the signal at the Ninth Street and Cloud Street intersection (installed October 2014).
What the arrows mean:
Solid red arrow: Drivers intending to turn left must stop and wait. Do not enter an intersection to turn when a solid red arrow is being displayed.
Solid yellow arrow: The left-turn signal is about to change to red and drivers should prepare to stop or prepare to complete a left turn if they are legally within the intersection and there is no conflicting traffic present.
Flashing yellow arrow: Drivers are allowed to turn left after yielding to all oncoming traffic and to any pedestrians in the crosswalk. Oncoming traffic has a green light. Drivers must wait for a safe gap in oncoming traffic before turning.
Solid green arrow: Left turns have the right of way. Oncoming traffic has a red light.
What makes the flashing yellow arrow a better signal?
A national study conducted for the Federal Highway Administration demonstrated that this new signal indication:
- Helps to prevent crashes. The study concluded that drivers found the new flashing yellow arrows easier to understand than the traditional yield-on-green indications.
- Increases the amount of traffic that moves through an intersection. There are more opportunities to make a left turn with the flashing yellow arrow than the fully protected left turn indication with only a green arrow.
- Provides more flexibility. The new signal provides more options for traffic engineers to handle variable traffic volumes and patterns.