Emerging is when you drive from a minor (side) road out onto a major (main) road.
On this lesson you’ll learn how to:
- Follow the Hazard Routine to approach the junction
- Recognise where the end of the road is and where to give way
- Know where you need to stop / pause / give way
- Recognise whether you are approaching an ‘open’ or ‘closed’ junction
- Understand if you need to stop or you can keep the car moving
- Use ‘Peep and Creep’ if visibility is reduced
HAZARD ROUTINE
- Mirrors
- Signal
- Position
- Speed
- Look
Approaching the Junction
When you approach a junction you’ll follow the Hazard Routine.
Look well ahead to recognise where the end of the road actually is. Start the Hazard Routine in good time:
Mirrors
To turn left check middle and left door mirror
To turn right check middle and right door mirror
Signal
Indicate left or right in good time
Position
To turn left follow the left kerb
To turn right move towards the right of your lane
Speed (and gear)
Approach slowly enough to give yourself plenty time to check into the new road, and to allow you to stop smoothly if necessary.
Most junctions need to be approached very slowly to give yourself enough time to check properly when it will be clear and safe to emerge, so at most junctions you will emerge in 1st gear.
Look
Look ‘Right – Left – Right’ as a minimum.
Look for pedestrians who may cross the road. If a pedestrian is on the road they will have priority and you must wait for them to cross.
Look into other roads and driveways to check for other road users who may choose to emerge at the same time as you.
Take that extra look for cyclists and motorcyclists, they are very vulnerable and harder to see than larger vehicles.
Keep checking both ways until you find a safe time to emerge.
The End of a Road
It is really important that you always recognise you are approaching the end of a road because you will need to give way to traffic on the main road.
Clues to look out for are:
- road signs
- road markings (2 broken lines (or a solid single line) across the end of the road)
- traffic driving across your path
- houses across the road in front of you
Take extra care at junctions that do not have any road markings.
You are aiming to keep the car moving, but if you have to wait for a safe gap, stop the car at the Give Way lines.
It is really important to stop at the Give Way lines, not before you get to them, and not so the front of the car has gone over them.
Reference Point – the Give Way lines at the end of the road will appear to be sitting underneath the door mirror
Open and Closed Junctions
The speed that you approach a junction will depend on how much you can see into the new road.
If you can clearly see traffic on the new road it is an ‘open junction’.
If you cannot clearly see traffic on the new road it is a ‘closed junction’.
At a ‘closed junction’ you will not be able to see if it is safe to emerge until you reach the very end of the road.
Most junctions will ‘open’ up when you get near the end of the road.
Many junctions are a mixture of ‘open’ and ‘closed’, for example they may be ‘closed’ on the left but ‘open’ on the right.
If the junction is very ‘closed’ it will be marked as a Stop junction.
Stop Junctions
A Stop Junction will have a Stop sign and a solid white line across the junction.
*A Stop sign is very clear. It is red, has 8 sides, and the word STOP written in white letters*
At a Stop junction visibility is very limited and you must stop the car completely at the line.
It is not necessary, or law, to put your handbrake on, but I advise that you do.
Is It Safe to Emerge?
You need to assess the speed and distance of any vehicles on the major road.
You may use the ‘Walk Across, Drive Across’ rule to decide if you are going to wait or emerge.
Emerging Left
Look at the vehicle approaching from your right.
You need to drive out, and speed up in front of it, without causing it to Stop, Slow or Swerve.
Ask yourself, “would I walk all the way across the road and all the way back in front of the car (this is from the left kerb to the right kerb, and then back to the left kerb)?”
If the answer is “Yes”, then you probably have time to drive out in front of it.
Emerging Right
Look at the vehicle approaching from your right.
You need to cut in front of it, without causing it to Stop, Slow or Swerve.
Ask yourself, “would I walk across the road in front of it (this is from the left kerb to the right kerb?
If the answer is “Yes”, then you probably have time to drive out in front of it. At the same time, you need to look at the vehicle approaching from your left.
You will have to drive out, and speed up in front of it.
Ask yourself, “would I walk all the way across the road and all the way back in front of the car (this is from the left kerb to the right kerb, and then back to the left kerb)?”
If the answer is “Yes”, then you probably have time to drive out in front of it.
If the answer is no then wait until you find a safe gap.
Remember:
If You Don’t Know
Don’t Go
Peep and Creep
To ‘Peep and Creep’ is to lean forwards in your seat (Peep) and slowly edge the car forwards (Creep).
You will use your ‘Clutch Control’ skills to edge forwards under control. If you are going downhill you will need use to the brake pedal to control the speed and have your clutch pedal all the way down.
‘Peep and Creep’ is used when visibility is reduced so much that you cannot see clearly enough into the new road from the Give Way or Stop lines, to make a decision when to emerge.
You must not commit to driving out into the new road until you are sure it is safe, so you will need to safely get into a position where you can see better. You may end up positioned over the Give Way / Stop lines. Be careful that other road users don’t think you are emerging in front of them.