16.2.57. How should the driver of the blue car act in this situation?
UAЯк повинен вчинити водій синього автомобіля в даній ситуації?
This exam question from the Traffic Rules of Ukraine tests the basic skill of safe passage at uncontrolled intersections: how to determine priority when there are no signs or traffic lights. In real traffic, mistakes in identifying the main and secondary roads most often lead to conflict situations and accidents, which is why this topic is key for preparing for the theoretical exam.
The task belongs to the section of the Traffic Rules about passing intersections (item 16.11) and terms and definitions (item 1.10). It teaches how to establish which road is the main one by the type of surface: a paved road is considered the main road relative to a dirt road, even if there are no priority signs. Accordingly, a vehicle on a dirt road is obliged to “yield” to those approaching on the main road, regardless of their further direction of movement.
The option where the driver on the asphalt road goes first corresponds to the logic of item 16.11: the advantage belongs to the one moving on the main road. The alternative “to yield to a vehicle from the dirt road” contradicts the definitions of “main road” and “priority” from item 1.10 and actually changes the established order of passage according to the Traffic Rules. Understanding this principle helps to confidently solve similar exam questions and act correctly at intersections without priority signs.
Clause 1.10 (terms "Main road", "Give way", "Priority")
Main road — a road with a hard surface relative to a dirt road, or one that is marked by signs 1.22, 1.23.1, 1.23.2, 1.23.3, 1.23.4, 2.3. The presence of a hard surface on a secondary road immediately before the intersection does not make it equal in status to the intersecting road.
Give way — a requirement for a road user not to continue or resume movement, not to perform any maneuvers (except for the requirement to vacate the occupied lane), if this may force other road users who have priority to change their direction or speed.
Priority — the right to move first relative to other road users.
In this task, it is precisely by the definition of "main road" that it is established that the paved road (for the blue car) is the main road relative to the dirt road (for the tractor), and therefore the blue car has "priority", and the tractor must "give way".
Clause 16.11
At an intersection of roads of unequal importance, the driver of a vehicle moving on the secondary road must give way to vehicles approaching this intersection on the main road, regardless of their further direction of movement.
Application: the tractor is approaching on the secondary (dirt) road, so it is obliged to give way to vehicles on the main (paved) road, in particular to the blue car.
Thus, the correct answer is "Without giving way to the tractor, proceed first," considering that according to the definition in the Traffic Rules, the paved road is the main road relative to the dirt road, and at an intersection of roads of unequal importance, a vehicle from the secondary road must give way to those moving on the main road.
In this situation, you first need to determine which road is the main one and which is the secondary, since there are no priority signs. According to the definition in paragraph 1.10 of the Traffic Rules, a road with a hard surface is considered the main road relative to a dirt road. That is, if one road is paved and the other is dirt, the paved road has the status of the main road even without installed signs.
The blue car is moving on the road with a hard surface, so it is approaching the intersection on the main road. The tractor, accordingly, is approaching on the dirt road, which in this pair of roads is the secondary one.
Next, we apply paragraph 16.11 of the Traffic Rules: at an uncontrolled intersection of roads of unequal importance, the driver moving on the secondary road is required to yield to vehicles approaching on the main road, regardless of their further direction of movement. This means the tractor must yield to the blue car.
To correctly understand the requirement to “yield,” let’s recall the definition from paragraph 1.10 of the Traffic Rules: it is the obligation not to start or continue moving if, due to your actions, another participant who has the right of way would be forced to change speed or direction. Since the right of way in this situation belongs to the blue car, the tractor does not have the right to drive out in such a way that would force it to brake or change its trajectory.
Therefore, the correct answer is: "Without yielding to the tractor, proceed first," since the blue car is moving on the main (paved) road, and the tractor is on the secondary (dirt) road and, according to paragraph 16.11, is required to yield.