No, really, after you: A scene from a four-way stop
Posted on November 5th, 2008 – 6:12 PMBy Roadguy
The appropriately named TruckerBiker offers us this tale:
The four-way stop seems to confuse just about every driver: Who got here first? What do they mean, “the car on the right”? Can’t they see me waving them through (even though it’s night and I’m not visible)? Can I just wait here until every one else has gone home?
But last week I encountered a new twist.
Bicycling west on the Midtown Greenway after dark, I approached the stop sign at Holmes Av., just as a small pickup was approaching from the north. The truck stopped on the small upgrade. I stopped, never trusting that my headlight is visible and figuring this was a time to be a law-abiding bicyclist.
The standoff lasted a few seconds.
Then the truck started to creep forward up the grade into the intersection. I got back on the pedals, figuring the truck would quickly clear and I could move on.
But the truck stopped. So I stopped again, unclipping from the pedals, and putting my feet on the ground.
I gave the truck a histrionic “Go!” kind of wave. And then I noticed the window rolling down.
Was this trouble?
I heard a small voice:
“I’m sorry. I’m driving a stick and I’m stalled.”
13 Responses to "No, really, after you: A scene from a four-way stop"
That the truck even stopped at all in that part of town at night is a treat.
I hoped you thanked them or even offered to wait to make sure their truck started up again.
There is a 4-way stop (well, several) on the Greenway in Uptown where two of the stop signs are for the bike trail, and others are for the street.
I approached the stop sign after a vehicle had stopped, and I stopped and waiting for the car to go. She wouldn’t go. I pointed at my stop sign, and she still wouldn’t go. Then the driver’s friend started yelling at me through the closed car window. Finally she went in haste.
There was a news crew there once, too, trying to talk to bikers who didn’t stop for the stop signs. Of course they didn’t want to talk to me because 1) I actually stopped, 2) I wasn’t a young woman in a tight, skimpy tank top–who they did actually talk to.
The thing about driving a stick is hilarious, though.
A co-worker from Tucson told me a joke about the definition of eternity:
Four Minnesotans sitting at a 4-way stop sign, all waving to each other to go.
I don’t think his joke was too far off the mark. 
This is related to something my friends and I have been trying to recall from our drivers’ ed classes so perhaps someone can answer this here [I checked online for traffic regulations but didn’t find a specific example].
Who has the right-of-way at an non-lighted intersection of a main thoroughfare and a neighborhood street [neighborhood street traffic having stop signs]: vehicle 1 [a left-turning vehicle that arrived at the intersection first] or vehicle 2 [a vehicle going straight through the intersection and approaching from the opposite side from vehicle 1]?
If I understand correctly, you are talking about two cars on the main thoroughfare, coming at each other. One is going straight and one is trying to turn left.
In that case, I’m pretty sure the left-turner has to yield to oncoming traffic, so the right-of-way goes to the car going straight.
Regardless of which street the two vehicles are on, the vehicle going straight has right-of-way over the vehicle turning left.
Doesn’t right-of-way go to the first car there? Otherwise, a left-turning car would only be able to go after ALL cars coming the opposite way have gone through the intersection.
Green Mountain Boy - At a no-stop intersection, those going straight have right of way over those turning left. So, yes, they will have to wait until it’s clear before they can turn.
Also…
If two cars (head on) come to a stop sign at the same time, the one going straight goes before the one turning left. It’s not like the left-turner has to wait until everyone in line at the stop sign goes through.
Whoa… I didn’t realize how many people didn’t know the yield-on-left-turn rule.
All those times that someone turned at me when I was going straight, I thought they were just trying to act tough.
(I now have to offer apologies for all those hand signals I gave that are not in the drivers manual.)
People who can’t figure out a 4-Way stop shouldn’t be driving - anything!
GMB: only at an ALL-WAY stop, if the left-turning vehicle gets there first, will that left-turning vehicle have the right-of-way.
I was thinking all-way stop, as that’s what the original post was about. I missed the transition to “Main thoroughfare vs. side street” in the comments. My error.
