Question from Maksym Hresko:
Kyiv, European Square. While going up Volodymyrskyi Descent towards European Square, we approach an intersection with traffic lights and signs indicating permitted directions by lane: two left lanes for turning onto Hrushevskoho Street, straight ahead for Khreshchatyk and beyond.
I am interested: is it allowed at this traffic light, before reaching the center of the square, to make a U-turn from the far left lane and go back in the opposite direction? After all, the sign and the rules, it seems, do not prohibit such a maneuver. But this "semi-flowerbed" confuses me — are there any hidden restrictions here that make a U-turn unacceptable?
Answer from experts of Karat driving school:
The traffic rules do not prohibit a U-turn from the far left lane at this intersection, despite the installed sign 5.16 "direction of travel by lanes".
However, for traffic safety, it is better to perform this maneuver differently: turn left onto Hrushevskoho Street and make a U-turn at the intersection with Petrovskoho Street, which is located in front of the Dynamo stadium.
At the European Square intersection, U-turns are made very rarely, and most drivers expect you to continue moving without stopping, turning left, rather than making a U-turn. If you stop in the center of the intersection to make a U-turn, it will be unsafe — a car driving behind may not expect it and crash into you.
Conclusion: Such a U-turn is formally allowed by the rules, but to avoid provoking an emergency situation, it is better to pass the traffic light, turn onto Hrushevskoho, and make a U-turn at the next intersection.
Let us remind you that earlier AvtoPortal analyzed a complex intersection near KPI.
If you do not understand signs or markings on Ukrainian roads — send your questions with the city and address to [email protected]
All answers will be published in the "Traffic Rules Lessons" section.
