Regulatory signs · R3-2
No Left Turn sign
Archive file: R03-02 Movement Prohibition - No Left Turn/R03-02 Movement Prohibition - No Left Turn 36x36.svg
FHWA public-use information
What it means
A left turn is prohibited here.
Source: FHWA MUTCD — MUTCD 11th Edition with Revision 1 (December 2025), Section 2B.26, paragraph 05, PDF page 130.
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Meaning
No Left Turn forbids entering the intersecting road by turning left. Waiting for oncoming traffic to pass does not resolve the restriction. The question is not whether you can find a gap; the leftward movement at this junction is excluded by the sign.
What to do
Keep a signed left turn out of your route through this intersection. Pennsylvania distinguishes a prohibition from an unprotected turn: a permitted left may require yielding to approaching vehicles, but yielding cannot make a prohibited left legal. Check the sign before committing to a turn lane.
Where it is used
A No Left Turn sign does not have to stand on your left. Federal placement guidance includes a median, an overhead position or the far left corner, and also allows it beside the Stop or Yield sign at the near-right corner. Scan the controls for your approach before entering.
A sign to tell apart
No U-Turn forbids a reversal that sends you back the way you came. No Left Turn forbids the left turn into the other road. The federal manual provides a combined sign when both maneuvers are prohibited. Recognize which maneuver is crossed out rather than treating every left-bending arrow as identical.
Practice with explanations
These are original learning questions based on the cited handbooks. Read each answer and its explanation below.
1. At a Pennsylvania intersection, No Left Turn faces you. Oncoming vehicles have cleared. What does the open gap change?
- It allows the turn after you yield.
- It allows the turn after a full stop.
- It does not remove the left-turn prohibition.
Answer: C. It does not remove the left-turn prohibition.
A gap matters when the turn is permitted. It cannot remove a sign that prohibits the movement.
2. Which statement distinguishes No Left Turn from PennDOT’s Left Turn Yield on Green guidance?
- No Left Turn prohibits the movement; the yield instruction describes a permitted turn with a duty to wait for oncoming traffic.
- Both signs allow a left whenever oncoming traffic is absent.
- The yield instruction prohibits left turns throughout the intersection.
Answer: A. No Left Turn prohibits the movement; the yield instruction describes a permitted turn with a duty to wait for oncoming traffic.
A prohibited turn and a permitted but unprotected turn are different situations. Yielding addresses the latter.
State source coverage
Handbook coverage and sample questions do not prove that a sign will appear on your exam. Even a published test scope cannot guarantee an individual exam question.
Pennsylvania
Handbook coverage
PennDOT explains this sign in its Pennsylvania Driver’s Manual. This is handbook coverage; it does not establish that this particular sign will appear on your Knowledge Test.
Pennsylvania permit sources · Practice with Pennsylvania questions
State variations
State-specific variations have not been independently established for this study.
Verified question coverage
These free state-bank questions were independently verified. This does not establish complete state-bank readiness, app availability or what will appear on your permit exam.
California
1 free question uses this sign in Steerlet's verified question data.
California permit sources · General California permit practice (does not include this sign)
The linked 20-question permit quizzes do not currently include this sign.
Practice this sign in the federal 20-sign quiz. That tool uses MUTCD questions and is separate from the state-bank questions listed here.
This meaning is a federal MUTCD reference. Check your state's handbook for its rules and sign coverage; this page does not establish what appears on a state permit exam.
Try the free road sign quiz or find your state's handbook.