Right of way, turns and intersections in Utah

By the end of this topic you can

• You can decide who goes first at four-way stops and dark signals.
• You can make a legal turn on red and on a flashing yellow arrow.
• You can use roundabouts and shared center turn lanes correctly.
• You can plan right, left and U-turns that finish in the correct lane.

What you need to know and understand

• At a four-way stop, the first driver there goes first; if two arrive together, yield to the driver on your right.
• When turning left, yield to oncoming traffic.
• Drivers coming from a driveway or private road yield to traffic on the public road.
• You may turn right on a red light after a complete stop unless a sign says otherwise.
• A flashing yellow arrow means you may turn left after yielding to oncoming traffic and pedestrians.
• If signals are dark, stop first and yield to vehicles on your right unless an officer directs you.
• Since May 6, 2026 (HB 128), Utah law no longer requires you to signal while navigating a roundabout.
• Do not enter a shared center left turn lane more than 500 feet before your turn.

Who yields to whom

• The driver who reached the intersection first.
• Oncoming traffic, when you are turning left.
• The driver on your right, if you both arrive at a four-way stop together.
• Traffic on the public road, when you leave a driveway or private road.
• Traffic already on the interstate, when you use an on-ramp.
• Pedestrians and cyclists still in the intersection, even when your light is green.
• A police officer's directions, which override any signal.

Making turns the Utah way

Never drive over a traffic island. U-turns are illegal on freeways, at railroad crossings, where signs ban them, and on curves or hills where you cannot see or be seen for 500 feet. Cities set their own extra U-turn rules.

1. Check traffic, signal for at least two seconds and move into the correct lane early.
2. Head check over the shoulder on the side you are turning.
3. If you must stop, stop behind the stop line or crosswalk with your wheels straight.
4. Turn without cutting the corner or swinging wide, watching for pedestrians.
5. Finish in the matching lane; after a single left turn, end in the far-left lane.
6. Cancel the signal, build up speed and move to the right-most lane when safe.

Roundabouts and newer intersection designs

Utah roundabouts flow counterclockwise. Slow down, yield to traffic already circling and to pedestrians, enter when clear and leave at your street. Utah also uses continuous flow intersections, where left turns cross the oncoming lanes at a first signal before the main junction, and Thru-U-turn intersections, where you go straight, make a signaled U-turn further on and come back to turn right. At diverging diamond interchanges you briefly drive on the left side of the bridge. Follow the signs, lane lines and every signal carefully.

Common mistakes

• Treating a green light as permission to turn left. Oncoming traffic still has priority unless you have a green arrow.
• Rolling through a right turn on red. You must stop completely first.
• Turning left into the wrong lane of a multi-lane road. Finish in the lane that matches the one you turned from.
• Trusting another driver's turn signal. They may turn later or have forgotten to cancel it.

Test yourself: Right of way, turns and intersections in Utah

Answer each question, then read the explanation. Questions come in a random order each time.

Go deeper

• Moving to Utah
• How to Get a Driver License in Utah
• Utah 0.05 BAC Law and Not a Drop for New Drivers