Traffic rules - Part 1 — A SWISS IN L.A.

You might be as confused as Spartacus when trying to figure out certain traffic signs. It's best to get familiarized before hitting the road and risking a ticket or even an accident.

In the State of California an International Driver License is not recognized BUT you're fine driving with your foreign driver license until you become a California resident. There is a grey zone of when exactly you become a resident, so I won't go into details here.

Here are some tips on how to survive this traffic jungle and not to get senseless tickets. First of all - always read ALL the signs!

With that said, if you can figure out this sign below, you deserve a prize! I wanted to park there but after 5 minutes of massive confusion, I parked in a different spot...

1. Handicapped parking

Unless of course you do have a handicapped parking pass, don’t even think about parking there. Even if it’s just for a few minutes, the fine starts at $250 = not worth it!

2. Parking direction

Unlike in most European Cities you are only allowed to park in the driving direction! If you're parking on a hill make sure to turn your wheels towards or away from the curb - if you passed your driving test you better know which way to turn them :)

3. Four-way Stop

This is the land of stop signs, seriously. I guess they haven't quite discovered the simplicity of roundabouts (Kreisverkehr) In fact, I just read in the newspaper that they are testing the impact of five mini roundabouts...

You better pay attention when you stop at a 4-way STOP sign as this is like a memory game: whoever gets there first, leaves first. If two vehicles reach the intersection simultaneously, the vehicle on the left must yield the right-of-way to the vehicle on the right.

Keep in mind that not all STOP signs are a 4-way Stop. Some of them only have a STOP sign on one street and the cross street might not have a stop, so watch out for that before assuming that everybody will be stopping!

A Stop also means a full Stop! Just slowing down and then carrying on through the intersection without coming to a full stop is called a "California Stop" or "Rolling Stop" and once again can get you a hefty ticket.

4. Right turn at red light

If you’re sitting at the red light at the right turn lane and are wondering why people are honking at you - it’s probably because you didn’t know that you’re allowed to make a right turn. Before you do so make sure to check for the following:

a) Make sure there’s no sign that says 'NO TURN ON RED' or no turn between certain hours!!!

b) Make a full stop, otherwise you might get fined for running a red light which is very costly $$$.

c) Make sure the intersection is clear of cars and pedestrians before proceeding.

5. No turns between certain hours

This sign is not very common, but they do exist. You can almost expect an officer to be hanging around that time ready to write you a ticket. A ticket like that is considered a moving violation, which is not only a lot more expensive than a parking ticket, it will also go on your driving record and increases your car insurance. There's ways to get rid of those points by attending traffic school (different to driving schools) but you can only take advantage of that once in 18 months!

6. U-turns

U-turns can come in pretty handy but obviously you can't just do them anywhere you like. There are a lot of restrictions, that's why it's best to only do them where you're absolutely sure.

On this particular 1.2mile stretch there are 20 signs on each side in both directions (!!!) BUT I still see people pull a U-turn.

7. Left turn at green light

This is a really tricky one as this causes several accidents with foreigners. If you want to take a left turn at a green light you still have to wait until the opposite traffic has cleared UNLESS you have a green arrow. Because this is very different in Europe, be careful!

8. Pedestrian

This lesson cost me $250 because I had no clue that you can get a ticket as a pedestrians stepping off the curb when the hand or number is flashing! This explanation as seen on the sign below I've only seen at the airport. I'm sure some cities are more forgiving than others but definitely don't do it L.A. downtown!

So much for the first part of traffic rules. I will soon post another blog about rules on freeways, car pool lanes and such. Make sure to check back and learn more about all the driving rules here:

check out the California Driver License handbook