I’ve written about this before as part of the article on how to use the handbrake/parking brake properly, but I’m seeing a lot of visits on specific search terms related to STOP junctions.
A typical STOP junction looks something like the image above. This one is in West Bridgford, Nottingham, and it consists of a solid STOP line, the word ‘STOP’ painted on the road, and the octagonal STOP sign.
STOP junctions are placed where there is a risk of accident as a result of poor visibility, road speeds, road layouts, and so on. So how should you deal with them?
The Highway Code (HC) says:
Rule 171
You MUST stop behind the line at a junction with a ‘Stop’ sign and a solid white line across the road. Wait for a safe gap in the traffic before you move off.
Laws RTA 1988 sect 36 & TSRGD schedule 9 parts 7 and 8
Any rule in the HC which uses the word ‘MUST’ also includes a reference to the specific Laws that it comes from.
The RTA (Road Traffic Act) part simply refers to general compliance with road signs. If you then read into TSRGD (Traffic Signs Regulations and General Directions), you have this initial directive:
And this leads on to the following specific detail:
Stop sign
Subject to paragraph 2, the requirements conveyed to vehicular traffic on roads by a stop sign are that:
The Traffic Signs Regulations and General Directions 2016
- every vehicle must stop before crossing the transverse line provided for at item 1 of the sign table in Part 6 of this Schedule, or if that line is not clearly visible, before entering the major road in respect of which the stop sign has been provided; and
- no vehicle must cross the transverse line, or if that line is not clearly visible, enter the major road in respect of which the stop sign has been provided, so as to be likely to endanger any person, or to cause the driver of another vehicle to change its speed or course in order to avoid an accident.
It couldn’t be clearer. Every vehicle must stop before crossing the line when there is a STOP sign. If a vehicle doesn’t, then it is in breach of this specific Law.
If you break this Law, then you are liable for a fixed penalty notice (FPN), which amounts to 3 points on your licence and a fine (which is a minimum of £100, I believe). However, this is the minimum penalty – if the Police deem it serious enough, it could go to Court and a fine of up to £1,000 is possible, and the number of points given would be at the discretion of the Court.
In summary, all the higher primates should be able to conclude from this that you MUST stop at a STOP junction. Indeed, on your test, if you don’t stop completely if you encounter one, then you will – absolutely and definitely – fail. The examiners’ DT1 Internal Guidance states:
Expected outcome / competence
Ability to understand and be able to react to all traffic signs and road markings…
Assessment criteria
Serious fault
Failing to comply correctly and promptly with an appropriate traffic [sign] or breaching a legal requirement.
DVSA
What does ‘stop’ mean?
It means ‘not moving at all’. Not even a little bit. It means not creeping, crawling, rolling, slowing down, or anything else which involves movement. It means absolutely stationary.
The problem with learners is they are sometimes not as spatially aware as they should be, and they genuinely think they have stopped when they haven’t. I get a lot who try to argue that, and if they won’t accept me stating that they didn’t stop, I show them the dashcam footage and it shuts them up.
Let’s face facts here. There is a special sign which has ‘STOP’ written on it. It is a special shape which is designed to be recognisable even if it is covered with snow. It is intentionally different to the triangular ‘GIVE WAY’ sign, so logic dictates it must also have a different purpose compared with that. And it does have a different purpose – it tells you that you must stop. If you don’t stop, then you are using it as a ‘GIVE WAY’, and it isn’t a ‘GIVE WAY’.
Any competent driver should know when they have stopped. And I mean properly stopped. Unfortunately, some beginners are not quite there yet, and they need to do things a little differently. That’s why I sometimes advise them to use the handbrake/parking brake.
This in itself can cause problems if they pull it while they are still moving, but in most cases that will only be a driver fault as long as they aren’t moving too quickly and don’t keep doing it. However, it is a good way for them to be sure they have really stopped still at a ‘STOP’ junction.
Let me just clarify this. You do not have to use the handbrake/parking brake at a ‘STOP junction. I highlighted the words ‘some’ and ‘sometimes’, because some people sometimes need a little extra assistance. If you have trouble knowing if you have stopped or not, using the handbrake will help you be sure that you have.
Where should I stop?
At the STOP line. Every single car is obliged – by Law – to stop at the STOP line. It doesn’t matter if you stopped behind the car or cars in front of you first. You must stop when you get to the STOP line.
And it doesn’t matter what the cars in front of you do. You can guarantee that most drivers – particularly those of Audis, BMWs, Mercedes, and so on – will not stop unless they absolutely have to. That’s their problem, because by Law they should be stopping no matter what.
What gear should I do it in?
You’re going to stop. What gear do you think? You want 1st gear, and you should be planning to drop into that and stop. Nothing else: just 1st gear and stop.
If you approach in a higher gear, there is a risk you will forget to stop and keep going.
And if you’re learning in an Automatic, get your instructor to find a method that works for you.