Reply to Move into intersection when turning left

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Reply to "Move into intersection when turning left - WHY don’t people do this?"

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]

We're all talking about THE FIRST CAR IN THE LINE. In the WaPo article I posted, they made it clear that the FIRST CAR can wait in the intersection to turn. That's 100% legal.

No one is talking about any other car in the line doing anything but wait outside the intersection. [/quote]

It doesn't matter if you put it in all capitals and yell, you are still wrong.  The WaPo is not the law and is nothing by hearsay.  Let's look at the DC MVA Driver's Manual, which [b]*IS*[/b] the law:

Note that these are excerpts that are cut and pasted from the document, the sections are not contiguous.
[quote][b]Right-of-Way[/b]
• [u]If you are about to turn left at an intersection[/u] or into an alley, private road or driveway, [u]you must yield the right-of-way to other pedestrians and vehicles until it is safe to turn[/u]

[b]Driving Rules
Left Turn[/b]
• [u]Do not block the intersection while waiting for oncoming traffic to clear[/u]
• [u]It is illegal to make a left turn on red in the District of Columbia[/u]

[b]Stopping
Stop Means Cease Movement and No Rolling Stops[/b]
•[u] Before entering an intersection when the roadway beyond the intersection is blocked with traffic, you should stop and proceed through the intersection once it is no longer blocked.[/u] Don’t Block the Box! Don’t Block the Crosswalk!

[b]Stopping, Standing, Parking – Prohibited[/b]
Except when necessary to avoid a conflict with other traffic, or in compliance with the direction of a police officer or official traffic control device, [u]do not stop a vehicle[/u]:
• [u]Within an intersection[/u]

[b]Steady Green Signal[/b]
[u]Proceed with caution after you have checked first to see that other vehicles have cleared the intersection. When it is safe to proceed, you may enter the intersection[/u] to go straight ahead or [u]turn [/u]unless a sign or additional signal prohibits the turn.
[/quote]

The DC MVA is consistent.  Do not enter the intersection until the intersection is clear for you to complete your move, like your left turn.  The intersection cameras are not just money grabs, they are there as a deterrence from this practice of blocking the box with the intent of turning left.

It used to be ignored to do what OP is suggesting because it used to be more common for oncoming traffic to actually stop and leave the tail end of the yellow for the lead car to make the turn.  Now, most oncoming traffic runs the yellow and many run the red, so there is no guarantee, in fact, it is almost assured that the car in the intersection will be turning left on red, rather on yellow as it is becoming less and less likely that traffic will leave any yellow light for turning vehicles.
[/quote]

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