Dip sign
What the Dip sign means: There is a dip in the road ahead that can hide oncoming traffic and jolt the car, so slow down.
- Group
- Warning signs
- Does this group carry the law
- Not enforceable on its own. It changes nothing about right of way.
- In the sign deck
- 3 questions ask about this sign
What to do when you see it
- Slow down before the dip so the suspension is not loaded when you reach it.
- Expect your view of the road beyond to disappear for a moment.
- Do not overtake, because oncoming traffic can be hidden in the low point.
- In wet weather, expect water to sit at the bottom.
Where you see it
On country roads crossing gullies and dry creek beds, on older roads that follow the land rather than cutting through it, and at floodway approaches.
Across the states and territories
The warning is national. In northern Australia and inland Queensland, Western Australia and the Northern Territory a dip is often a floodway, signed separately with depth markers, and driving into moving water is the risk rather than the jolt.
Tell it apart from these
- Dipthis pageHump
A dip hides what is beyond it. A hump lifts you over something. Both interrupt your view, in opposite directions.
Hump: There is a raised hump across the road ahead, so slow right down before you reach it.
- Dipthis pageSlippery road
The bottom of a dip is where water and gravel collect, which is why the two signs often appear on the same stretch.
Slippery road: The road ahead can be slippery, so slow down, brake gently and leave a bigger gap.
How the knowledge tests use it
It supports questions about overtaking and sight distance, since anywhere your view drops is a place you cannot overtake.
What does this sign mean?
A dip is a short drop and rise in the road surface. It can hide oncoming vehicles, jolt the suspension and hold water after rain.
State and territory driver handbooks, warning signs
Common questions
- What does the Dip sign mean?
- There is a dip in the road ahead that can hide oncoming traffic and jolt the car, so slow down.
- What should you do when you see a Dip sign?
- Slow down before the dip so the suspension is not loaded when you reach it. Expect your view of the road beyond to disappear for a moment. Do not overtake, because oncoming traffic can be hidden in the low point. In wet weather, expect water to sit at the bottom.
- Where is the Dip sign used?
- On country roads crossing gullies and dry creek beds, on older roads that follow the land rather than cutting through it, and at floodway approaches.
- What is the Dip sign confused with?
- Hump: A dip hides what is beyond it. A hump lifts you over something. Both interrupt your view, in opposite directions. Slippery road: The bottom of a dip is where water and gravel collect, which is why the two signs often appear on the same stretch.
- How do the knowledge tests ask about the Dip sign?
- It supports questions about overtaking and sight distance, since anywhere your view drops is a place you cannot overtake.
Try it in a question
Original practice questions, not the official bank. How we write and check them.
More warning signs
Yellow diamond with a black symbol.