Driver's License Test Prep
Oregon Practice Right of Way

Two vehicles arrive at an Oregon four-way stop at the same moment. Who has the right of way?

  1. A.
    The driver on the left.
  2. B.
    The driver on the right. Correct
  3. C.
    The driver who came to a complete stop first.
  4. D.
    Whichever driver is going straight rather than turning.
The Why

The answer is "The driver on the right."

At a four-way stop, common courtesy is to let the driver who stops first go first. When two drivers arrive at the same moment, that courtesy does not resolve the tie. The Oregon manual is explicit: "When in doubt, yield to the driver on your right." Direction of travel does not change who goes first; the rule applies whether either driver is going straight or turning.

Why the others miss

The traps in the wrong answers

A. The driver on the left.

The manual's tiebreaker is the opposite: yield to the driver on your right, not the left. Misreading: Reverses the manual's tiebreaker by yielding to the left instead of the right.

C. The driver who came to a complete stop first.

First-to-stop is the courtesy used when arrivals are staggered. When two drivers arrive at the same moment, the manual resolves the tie by yielding to the driver on the right. Misreading: Confuses the first-to-stop courtesy with the simultaneous-arrival tiebreaker, which the manual resolves by yielding to the driver on the right.

D. Whichever driver is going straight rather than turning.

Direction of travel does not break the tie at a four-way stop in Oregon. The driver on the right goes first regardless of who is turning. Misreading: Carries over an unprotected-left-turn intuition to a four-way stop, where the manual instead resolves ties by yielding to the driver on the right.

The Rule

This question tests your knowledge of Right of Way in Oregon. Source: Oregon Driver Manual, "Turns & Intersections, Intersections," p.42..

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