traffic lights by hawkwell driving school hockley

Traffic lights give priority to the road you are on if you see green, or the road crossing it if they show red to you. The lights control the stop line, so when you approach, if they change to amber stop if you can, but if you can’t stop behind the line - keep going. You can go through legally on amber.

Always approach traffic lights at less then 30mph, you only get 2 seconds on amber when they change to red. Check the mirror on the approach to see if anyone is close behind – if they are don’t stop suddenly. Ease your speed down on the approach and cover the brake until you are one car length away from the line.

Junction of hobleythick lane and prittlewell chase near southend on sea driving test centre photo taken by hawkwell driving school hockley

Right Turns: If the opposing right turn lanes are opposite each other (Bournemouth Park Road turning into Southchurch Road) (Kent Elms junction turning from Bridgewater Drive onto the A127) then the cars usually turn right in front of each other.

If the lanes are offset to the right (eg. turning into Prittlewell Chase from Hobleythick Lane) then the cars pass each other and turn behind, if this is the case keep straight and next to the white line. Beware of cars on your left.

Never be the third car into a junction (unless it is a very large one – Kent Elms) – you might get stuck in the middle.

Hobleythick Lane to Prittlewell Chase