New Mexico · Handbook chapter 2 · 5 min read

New Mexico traffic lights and arrows, warning, regulatory, work area and guide signs, railroad crossings, pavement markings, reversible lanes, reserved and HOV lanes and shared center lanes.

Why this chapter matters

Traffic signals, signs and pavement markings appear in every knowledge test. You must also obey police officers, highway workers and school crossing guards directing traffic, even when a signal says otherwise.

Traffic signals

• Steady green: go if it is safe, yielding to emergency vehicles and anyone the law requires. If you were stopped, let cross traffic clear first. Turning left on a plain green, you yield to oncoming traffic.
• Green arrow: you may turn in that direction; oncoming and crossing traffic should be stopped.
• Steady yellow: the light is about to turn red. Stop if you safely can; if you are already in the intersection, keep going.
• Yellow arrow: the protected green arrow is ending. Get ready to stop, or yield to oncoming traffic before turning.
• Flashing yellow: slow down and go with caution.
• Steady red: stop and wait for green and for cross traffic to clear. After a full stop you may turn right unless a sign forbids it. You may also turn left from a one-way street onto another one-way street unless prohibited.
• Flashing red: the same as a STOP sign.
• Red arrow: stop; you may not go in that direction until a green arrow or light comes on.

Signs by type

A red circle with a slash over a symbol forbids that action, such as no left turn or no U-turn.

Key regulatory signs

• STOP: eight sides, red with white letters. Stop at the stop line if there is one, wait until crossing vehicles and pedestrians have cleared, then go.
• YIELD: a downward triangle, red and white. Slow down and give the right-of-way to traffic in the intersection or road you are entering.
• DO NOT ENTER: a white bar in a red circle. You would be going the wrong way, for example up an exit ramp.
• Speed limit: the maximum speed in ideal conditions; some fast roads also post a minimum. If the minimum is too fast for you, use another road.
• No passing signs and markings show where passing is not allowed.

A reflective orange triangle on the back of a vehicle means it travels under 25 mph, such as farm equipment or horse-drawn wagons.

Railroad crossings

• A round yellow sign with an X and RR is placed before a crossing.
• The white crossbuck at the crossing has the same meaning as a YIELD sign: yield to trains.
• When side-by-side lights flash, you must stop. Never drive around a lowered gate, and do not cross until a bell or horn stops.
• Never start across unless there is room for your car on the far side. Avoid shifting gears on the tracks.
• After a train passes on a multi-track crossing, wait until it is well down the track; another may be hidden behind it.
• School buses, vehicles for hire carrying passengers and trucks carrying explosives or fuel must stop at least 15 feet from the crossing.

Pavement markings

• White lines separate lanes going the same direction. Dashed: you may change lanes when safe. Solid: stay in your lane unless a special situation requires a change.
• Yellow lines separate traffic going in opposite directions. Dashed: you may pass when safe. Solid and dashed: you may not pass if the solid line is on your side. Two solid yellow: neither side may pass, though you may cross to turn into a driveway when safe.
• Stop before the stop line or crosswalk when a sign or signal requires it, and give way to anyone walking in a crosswalk or stepping into one. Some crosswalks have no painted lines.

Other lane controls

• Reversible lanes are usually marked by double-dashed yellow lines. Over them, a green arrow means use the lane, a red X means do not, a flashing yellow X means turning only, and a steady yellow X means the lane is changing: move out of it.
• Reserved lanes are marked with signs and a white diamond: bus, bicycle or HOV lanes. "HOV 3" means at least three people in the vehicle.
• A shared center lane, with solid and dashed yellow lines on each side, is for left turns (and U-turns where allowed) by traffic from both directions.