Know the Road with the CHP: What's the bottom line when two cars enter an intersection and want to turn left?

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- An ABC30 viewer sent in the following question: what's the bottom line when two cars enter an intersection and both want to turn left? Do the cars make the turn in front of each other, or should they pass each other and then turn?

"So, if you're going down a two-lane roadway and you approach an intersection and you want to make a left turn, obviously you slow down, yield to all oncoming traffic that's close enough to pose a hazard, you're going to activate your left turn signal," said Sgt. Brian Pennings with the California Highway Patrol.

"If there is another vehicle approaching from the opposite direction who has indicated they want to turn left, you always make your left turn in front of each other," he said.

"The purpose of that is so you can both see what each other is doing. If you wait, that could create a dangerous situation because you're now out of that person's field of view. So you always make that left turn in front of that person rather than behind that vehicle," Pennings said.

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