When Can You Legally Turn Left on a Red Light in Iowa?
It's painful to roll up to an intersection where you know you have to turn left, just to miss the green light. Having to turn left and wait for the light to change seems to take forever. I'm not sure what's worse, waiting for the arrow to turn green, or waiting for a train. Both are equally unbearable. Can you tell I'm impatient?
I was once told that if a light has been red for more than two minutes and hasn't turned green, you can legally turn left. Whichever friend told me that was definitely wrong. I just checked with google... Even if the light is malfunctioning, it would be pretty tough to prove that to a police officer. However, there is one instance where you can turn left at a red light in Iowa.
When I first moved to Iowa I was told about the video camera's that can hand out speeding tickets, so I did some research on driving laws in this state, just in case there was anything vastly different from Minnesota.
Now, this law is the same in Minnesota but I've never really thought about it, I've always just done it. You've probably been doing this your whole life and haven't even realized it. You can turn left at red lights, in this situation, according to Iowa DOT
"you can turn left on a red, only if both streets involved are one-way streets"
Did you know there are states that don't allow this? Downtown Minneapolis is filled with one-way streets and I just assumed everyone did this. It's the same thing as going right at a red light, other than the fact it has to be a one-way street.
Before you go turning left at your next one-way red light, remember to look for a sign. Some intersections do have "no left on red" signs.
There are some states where it is never legal to turn left at a red light. According to Axle Addict, it is illegal in Connecticut, Missouri, (Kansas City is an exception) New York City, North Carolina, Rhode Island, New Jersey, South Dakota, (unless allowed by local ordinance) Maine, and New Hampshire.
The more you know. Safe driving Iowa.