Code 2 · Open lesson

3. Warning, guidance and temporary signs

Warning signs help you prepare before you reach a hazard. Many are triangular with a red border. A warning does not automatically give you priority or tell you a fixed safe speed: decide what the hazard means for the road you can actually see.

Turn a warning into a plan

• Bend ahead: reduce speed before the bend, keep a controlled road position and avoid overtaking where your view is restricted.
• Crossroad ahead: expect vehicles to cross or turn. Look for the signs or signals that determine priority at the junction.
• General warning: look for the hazard or supplementary information. Increase attention and be prepared to slow or stop.

Guidance signs help you choose a destination, route or lane early. Read them before you need to manoeuvre. Missing a turn is safer than a sudden lane change. Information signs identify facilities and services; a parking information sign is different from a no-parking restriction.

Roadworks and changing conditions

Follow temporary signs and authorised traffic control at roadworks. Expect workers, uneven surfaces, narrow lanes and stopping queues. Keep a gap and do not assume yesterday’s layout is still in place. On rural roads, look well beyond a sign for livestock, pedestrians, dust and other hazards.

Practice: for each warning illustration, finish the sentence “I will prepare by…” with an action, not just the name of the sign.

Exam preparation: details to remember

Extend your sign vocabulary: roadworks (worker digging), pedestrians (walking person), narrow bridge (inward narrowing sides), cattle, slippery road (skid tracks), tunnel (arch) and dead end (white stem ending at a red bar). A warning announces a hazard; it does not give priority. Information and route signs help you plan early.

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Check your understanding

18 questions · A/B/C answers · 75% to pass · unlimited retries. Scores are for this practice course.

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