Matt from Castle Rock writes, “What’s driving you crazy? Jayson, can you explain what is happening at the intersection of North Meadows Drive and Meadows Boulevard? When you are on North Meadows Drive making a right turn onto Meadows Boulevard, I'm turning right on a green arrow but the traffic opposite me, making the left turn, is not yielding. My question is, what are the drivers making a left turn seeing?”
I went down there, Matt, to take a look. Those drivers turning left first see a red arrow that lasts about two seconds and then they see a flashing yellow arrow. This is happening at the same time you are seeing the green right turn arrow. I found that to be rather unusual, so I asked the Castle Rock Transportation Engineering Division if that is the way the arrows are supposed to work. They told me, yes, the different arrows are working the way they are intended. It is the eastbound traffic turning left that isn’t yielding to traffic turning right as they should. That’s exactly what I saw as well — drivers making the left not waiting as they should for drivers to make that right turn.
As we have learned from previous Driving You Crazy stories, drivers turning right — especially on a green arrow — have the right of way over drivers turning left. The only exception is if the drivers turning left have a green arrow. In that case, drivers turning right should see a red light. Castle Rock Public Works told me, they have installed additional signage reminding drivers turning left to “yield on flashing left arrow,” but as we all know, drivers ignore signs like these all the time.
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The Castle Rock traffic engineers told me, the reason the drivers turning left have the brief red arrow is for safety purposes.
“It gives drivers notice that a new phase is occurring," Castle Rock traffic engineers said. "This new phase is the flashing yellow arrow for eastbound Meadows Boulevard drivers and is designed to allow the opposing through traffic to begin entering the intersection and it provides a safe gap before allowing turning movements. Meanwhile, the green right turn arrow for westbound Meadows Boulevard drivers begins with the through green and enables them to turn safely onto northbound N. Meadows Drive.”
As I continued to watch the signals, I noticed they changed their pattern during the afternoon school dismissal time allowing vehicles turning left to have a green arrow instead of yellow arrow. That change usually cleared the cue and prevented conflicts with vehicles turning right. I asked the Castle Rock traffic engineers if that is something that only happens during that time of day and why not use it more often.
They told me, “Yes, signal patterns can be adjusted during peak times, such as school dismissal, to manage traffic flow more effectively. This can involve giving left-turning vehicles a protected green light during these high-traffic periods to reduce congestion and minimize conflicts. These adjustments are designed to handle specific traffic conditions at particular times of day. The signal timing and phases are set up to respect these right-of-way rules and reduce conflicts.”
As for the drivers turning left who aren’t yielding, the city said, it regularly collaborates with the Castle Rock Police Department and emergency response services to address any issues with these signal timing adjustments, as well as increased enforcement where necessary. The city told me, they have made the CRPD aware of your concern saying, “Drivers must remain alert and exercise caution, as well as follow the driving rules of the road.”
Bottom line, you are clear to make that right on green but keep your head on a swivel for the driver turning left who ignores the rules.
Denver7 Traffic Expert Jayson Luber says he has been covering Denver-metro traffic since Ben-Hur was driving a chariot. (We believe the actual number is over 25 years.) He's obsessed with letting viewers know what's happening on their drive and the best way to avoid the problems that spring up. Follow him on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram or listen to his award winning Driving You Crazy podcast on any podcast app including iTunes, iHeartRadio, Spotify, Podbean, or YouTube.
