No left turn sign
What the No left turn sign means: You must not turn left at this intersection.
- Group
- Regulatory signs
- Does this group carry the law
- Enforceable. Disobeying one is an offence in itself.
- In the sign deck
- 3 questions ask about this sign
What to do when you see it
- Do not turn left here, whether or not a green arrow appears.
- Continue straight ahead and turn at the next street where the movement is allowed.
- Read any plate under the sign, because the ban is sometimes limited to certain hours or to certain vehicles.
Where you see it
At intersections where a left turn would cut across a bus lane, a tram line or a busy pedestrian crossing, and where the receiving street is one way against you.
Across the states and territories
The face is national. Time plates are the part that varies: peak hour bans are common in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane and rarer in smaller centres, and the hours themselves are set locally rather than nationally.
Tell it apart from these
- No left turnthis pageNo right turn
Same face, mirrored arrow. Read the arrow rather than the shape, because the two look almost identical at speed.
No right turn: You must not turn right at this intersection.
- No left turnthis pageNo U turn
The U turn version has a curled arrow that doubles back. The turn versions have a single bend.
No U turn: You must not make a U turn at this intersection or along this length of road.
How the knowledge tests use it
Questions usually check that a time plate limits the ban to the hours shown, and that outside those hours the turn is legal.
What does this sign mean?
The arrow shows the movement and the red ring with the bar bans it. Here that movement is a left turn.
State and territory driver handbooks, turning and U turns
Common questions
- What does the No left turn sign mean?
- You must not turn left at this intersection.
- What should you do when you see a No left turn sign?
- Do not turn left here, whether or not a green arrow appears. Continue straight ahead and turn at the next street where the movement is allowed. Read any plate under the sign, because the ban is sometimes limited to certain hours or to certain vehicles.
- Where is the No left turn sign used?
- At intersections where a left turn would cut across a bus lane, a tram line or a busy pedestrian crossing, and where the receiving street is one way against you.
- What is the No left turn sign confused with?
- No right turn: Same face, mirrored arrow. Read the arrow rather than the shape, because the two look almost identical at speed. No U turn: The U turn version has a curled arrow that doubles back. The turn versions have a single bend.
- How do the knowledge tests ask about the No left turn sign?
- Questions usually check that a time plate limits the ban to the hours shown, and that outside those hours the turn is legal.
Try it in a question
Original practice questions, not the official bank. How we write and check them.
More regulatory signs
Mostly white with red or black, and usually round or rectangular.