At an intersection with no STOP or YIELD signs, you arrive before another vehicle. Who has the right-of-way?
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A.
You, because you arrived at the intersection first. Correct
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B.
The larger of the two vehicles, regardless of arrival order.
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C.
The vehicle on the right, in every case.
The answer is "You, because you arrived at the intersection first."
California's rule at an unsigned intersection is that the vehicle arriving first has the right-of-way, and other traffic must wait. Choice C is the trap for drivers who memorized 'yield to the right' as a universal shortcut in driver's-ed, forgetting that the manual triggers that tie-breaker only when two vehicles arrive at the same moment.
The traps in the wrong answers
B. The larger of the two vehicles, regardless of arrival order.
Vehicle size is not a right-of-way factor at an unsigned intersection; arrival order is. This answer carries the highway habit of yielding to trucks and larger vehicles into an intersection rule where size is never listed as a factor.
C. The vehicle on the right, in every case.
The right-hand rule breaks ties only when two vehicles arrive at the same moment, not in every case. This answer applies 'yield to the right' as a universal shortcut from driver's-ed rote, missing that the manual triggers it only for same-moment arrivals.
This question tests your knowledge of Right of Way in California. Source: California Driver Manual, "Right-of-Way Rules: Who Goes First?, Intersections," p.39..
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