Traffic lights and the green arrow: rules, traps and questions

Yes. At a green arrow next to a red light (signal head S-2) you always stop before the signal head, even when nobody is around, and must not obstruct other road users: vehicles, pedestrians and cyclists. No stop is needed at directional signal S-3, where the whole signal is an arrow. Fine: 500 zł and 15 points.

Who is in charge at a junction: the hierarchy in art. 5

Art. 5 of the Road Traffic Act (Prawo o ruchu drogowym) sets the order in which you read a junction. Instructions and signals given by people directing traffic or authorised to control it take precedence over light signals and signs (para. 2). Light signals take precedence over signs regulating priority (para. 3). You follow signals and signs even when the provisions of the Act would require different behaviour (para. 1).

In practice: a police officer in the middle of the junction overrides the lights, working lights override signs A-7, D-1 and B-20 under the signal head (sygnalizator: the traffic light unit), and only without all of that do you go back to the general priority rules, which we describe in the post on priority at uncontrolled junctions and roundabouts.

The catalogue tests this with picture question 3184: whether, after passing the signal head, you must stop at the place indicated by the stop sign. In this situation the answer is NO, because a working signal switches the sign off.

Signal head S-1: what each signal means

Signal head S-1 is a three-lens signal with green, amber (yellow) and red lights. Their meaning is set out in the regulation on road signs and signals (par. 95):

Amber is the most common source of mistakes. It is not an invitation to speed up, but it is not an order to brake at any cost either. If at the moment the amber comes on you are so close that stopping would require harsh braking, you pass the signal head. Question 918 reverses the perspective: at 30 km/h in the situation in the picture you should stop the vehicle before the signal head (YES).

Flashing amber: the signals are off and the signs apply again

Flashing amber is not a phase between green and red. It means the signals are not working, and you follow the signs under the signal head and the general priority rules. It also warns of danger or an obstruction (question 7323: YES).

You may drive past a flashing amber without stopping if the signs and the situation allow it (7779: YES in the situation in the picture; 10411: YES). But if there is a stop sign under the signal head, you stop just as you would with the lights switched off. Questions 10459 and 10460 check that you do not expect green or red after it: both answers NO.

Green does not always mean a clear road

A green signal permits entry, but it does not exempt you from giving way when turning. Turning left, you give way to oncoming vehicles going straight or turning right, and turning in either direction, to pedestrians on the crossing. The catalogue asks directly: does green at a junction mean a conflict-free left turn (question 7142) has the answer NO, and 9330 (does green exempt you from particular care at a crossing) also NO. Picture questions 1292 and 8251 have the answer NO in their situations. The rules towards pedestrians when turning are described in the article on pedestrian priority at crossings.

The second limit of green is the space beyond the junction. Art. 25(4) point 1 prohibits entering a junction when there is no room on it or beyond it to continue driving. A green light and a queue beyond the junction mean you wait before the line. Entering despite the lack of room costs 300 zł (PLN) (item 103 of the fines tariff; as of September 2026).

Green arrow S-2: do you have to stop

Signal head S-2 is an S-1 signal head with an additional small green arrow next to the red signal. The arrow permits a turn in the direction shown (usually right) despite the red, but under two conditions from par. 96 of the regulation:

1. You stop before the signal head. Always, even when the junction is empty.
2. You give way to all other road users: vehicles, pedestrians and cyclists.

The catalogue leaves no margin here. Question 475 (whether in this situation you may turn right without stopping before the signal head) has the answer NO, as do 10454 and 6123. Question 8285 (whether, turning right at this junction, you are required to stop before the signal head) has the answer YES, as do 9601 and 8326. Driving through on the arrow without stopping is a failure to comply with a light signal, meaning 500 zł and 15 points.

In the practical test, failing to comply with light signals is in the table of behaviours that can result in the test being ended (par. 16(1) point 2 of the regulation on driving tests) when it directly endangered the life and health of road users. The result is then a fail without waiting for a second mistake.

S-2 versus S-3: how to tell the green arrow from a directional signal

The most common mistake is lumping both arrows together. Directional signal head S-3 shows arrow-shaped signals that apply only to the directions shown (par. 97). A green signal on S-3 means that when driving in the direction shown there is no conflict with other road users (par. 97(3)), and it does not require you to stop. You still take particular care at the crossing (art. 26(1)).

Question 478 shows S-3 in the picture and asks whether the signal being shown means that when driving to the right there is no conflict with other road users. In this situation the answer is YES. If the picture showed S-2, the answer would be the opposite, so before you tick, check whether the arrow is the whole signal or only an addition to the red.

S-4, S-7, S-5 and S-6: signals above the lane and for pedestrians

Signal head S-4 hangs above a traffic lane (par. 98(1)) and shows two signals: green (a green arrow pointing down) permits entry to the lane above which it hangs, and red (a red cross) prohibits entry to that lane. Signal head S-7 (par. 98(4)), with a steady or flashing signal, orders you to leave the lane above which it is placed and move to the part of the carriageway on the side shown by the arrow.

S-5 is a signal head for pedestrians: flashing green means red is about to come on and the pedestrian must leave the crossing as quickly as possible (par. 98(2)). S-6 is a signal head for cyclists. As a driver you do not follow them, but you read them, because they tell you who is about to step or ride onto the crossing.

Where to stop: line P-14 and arrows P-8 on the carriageway

On red you stop before line P-14, the conditional stop line made up of rectangles, and where there is none, before the signal head (par. 99). Question 639 (whether a broken transverse line marks the place of a conditional stop) has the answer YES. Stopping in the wrong place at a signal is 100 zł (item 283).

The gap from the vehicle in front of you at a red light must be safe. The Act gives no figure, and the catalogue expects a descriptive answer: 8986 (B) and 8988 (C).

Direction arrows P-8a, P-8b and P-8c painted on the lane are binding in the same way as signs (par. 87). A left arrow in the far left lane also permits a U-turn, unless sign B-23 prohibits it or traffic is controlled by an S-3 signal head (par. 87(2)). Picture questions 477 and 1695 have the answer NO. Driving contrary to the arrow costs 250 zł (item 290) and 5 points (code C 11).

Fines and points for traffic signals: table

Amounts from the fines tariff, points from the regulation on the register of drivers who breach traffic rules, in force since 3 June 2026. As of September 2026.

In the points column we give only the codes from the regulation on the register that we have matched to a specific item of the fines tariff.

Fifteen points for one red light is a lot: a driver in the first year after their first licence was issued has a limit of 20 points, so a second such offence means crossing the threshold. The bans on overtaking at junctions with and without controlled traffic are collected in the article on overtaking, bans, signs and fines.

Traffic signals in the practical test

Junctions with traffic signals are one of the on-road tasks, and failing to comply with light signals appears in the table of behaviours that can end the test when they directly endangered life and health. The examiner then does not wait for a second mistake: driving through on red or failing to stop at the green arrow ends the drive at once.

In the theory test, questions about signals usually come with a picture or a video, so what counts is what you can see on the signal head. How to manage the time for an answer and where learners lose points is described in the article on common mistakes in the theory test, and what to bring to the practical test and when it will not take place in the text on practical test day.

How the catalogue asks about traffic signals: cheat sheet

Questions marked with an asterisk come with a picture or a video and begin with "in this situation": the answer concerns the scene shown.

Four traps that cost the most points:

1. The green arrow means stopping plus giving way to everyone. "There was nobody there" is not an argument.
2. Flashing amber announces nothing. It is neither "green in a moment" nor "red in a moment".
3. Green does not give a conflict-free left turn and does not exempt you from care at a crossing.
4. The arrow on S-3 and the arrow on S-2 look similar but mean different things. Check whether the arrow is the whole signal.

You can practise all these questions on the list of category B test questions, and under test conditions in the category B test. Advice for the road: at the green arrow, count the stop the way you would at a stop sign, meaning the wheels are stationary, and only then do you look left, at the crossing and to the right.