With traffic lights out, police remind drivers of road rules

With many traffic lights out on P.E.I. after a massive power outage, there's a sense of uncertainly among some drivers of exactly what to do. 

Cpl. David Flynn with the Charlottetown Police says there is one simple rule drivers need to know — when the traffic lights are out, treat the intersection as a four-way stop. 

"It's very rare that we have an entire blackout of the city and there's no traffic lights on," he noted. 

"Sometimes at larger intersections, we get lineups. But it's going to take time to get through the intersection on these days," Flynn said.

'Go slowly, use caution'

Flynn said most people are cautious and courteous when lights are out, but it's clear there is some confusion. 

"Sometimes it gets confusing," he said.

"Where you get into some difficulty is when you get into an intersection that's busy — like maybe Belvedere and University — where you have multiple lanes, you have multiple turn lanes, and sometimes it gets confusing," Flynn said.

At a four-way stop, vehicles have the right of way in the order in which they arrive at the intersection. If more than one arrive at the same time, drivers must yield right of way to the vehicle to their right. 

"Don't do it too quickly. Go slowly, use caution. Because the person to your right or to your left may go at the same time."

Accident at intersection

Traffic lights were out in Charlottetown throughout much of the day on Thursday. Queen's District RCMP posted on Twitter to remind people of the rules at intersections.

Charlottetown police responded to several accidents on Thursday, and Flynn said one of those was caused by confusion at an intersection. 

Flynn said people usually become more comfortable with winter driving as the season progresses, and he reminds people to use winter tires, drive with caution and remember the rules of the road.

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