June 17, 2025 | Car Accident
Traffic lights were designed to help minimize risk at busy intersections. While most drivers are familiar with the typical solid red, yellow, and green lights, they may encounter flashing signals instead in certain situations.
To avoid life-threatening car accidents, it’s important to know what to do when you come across a flashing light at an intersection. Kentucky drivers may see several types of signals. Here’s how to navigate them safely.
What Does a Flashing Red Light Mean?
Under Kentucky law, flashing red lights should be treated just like stop signs.
When approaching these types of signals, you’re legally required to:
- Come to a complete stop
- Look both ways before proceeding or turning
- Yield to any cross traffic or pedestrians who may already be in the intersection
Even if the road looks clear, never assume that it’s safe to continue without first checking all directions carefully. Only proceed when the intersection is clear, regardless of whether you’re going straight or turning.
Flashing red lights will typically appear in lower-traffic intersections or when there’s a power outage or construction in the area.
What Does a Flashing Yellow Light Mean?
When you see a flashing yellow light, it means you should slow down and proceed with caution — this signal doesn’t require a complete stop. Drivers should reduce their speed and remain attentive while passing through the intersection. Look for traffic and be prepared to yield to pedestrians, cyclists, or other drivers.
This type of signal is most often used at intersections where one direction of traffic has priority, but there’s still a need to alert drivers to potential hazards.
Power Outages and Flashing Lights
When traffic lights go out due to a power failure, Kentucky drivers should generally treat intersections as four-way stops.
Each vehicle should come to a complete stop, yield to other drivers based on order of arrival or standard right-of-way rules, and proceed only when it’s safe. This type of orderly procession is especially important during severe weather or maintenance disruptions.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Intersections with flashing signals are often the site of preventable crashes. Drivers may be unsure of the rules or act impulsively, leading to split-second accidents.
Common mistakes include:
- Proceeding through a flashing red light without stopping
- Assuming that others will yield without checking
- Speeding through flashing yellow lights
- Failing to look for pedestrians or cyclists in the crosswalk
These errors can have serious consequences. Intersections with flashing signals tend to see higher rates of T-bone collisions and pedestrian accidents when drivers are distracted or make assumptions about others’ behavior.
Why Are Flashing Lights Used?
Flashing lights may be employed for any number of reasons. Some of the most common include reduced-traffic conditions (such as late at night or on rural roads), emergencies, maintenance requirements, road construction, and areas with historically low crash risk. Nonetheless, caution is necessary at all intersection crossings.
Flashing yellow arrows are also becoming more common in Kentucky. These signals indicate that drivers may turn left but must yield to oncoming traffic before proceeding.
Contact Our Car Accident Law Firm in Kentucky Today To Get More Information
Intersections already present heightened risk, and while flashing lights are meant to be helpful, they can increase confusion and reaction times when drivers don’t understand them.
Knowing how to navigate these intersections can help you protect not only yourself but also others with whom you share the road. As Kentucky continues to implement flashing signal systems, including flashing yellow arrows for turn lanes, driver awareness becomes more important than ever.
If you’ve been injured in an accident in Lexington or Bowling Green, please contact our car accident lawyers at Minner Vines Injury Lawyers, PLLC for a free case evaluation.
Minner Vines Injury Lawyers, PLLC – Lexington, KY Office 325 W Main St #210, Lexington, KY 40507 (859) 550-2900
Minner Vines Injury Lawyers, PLLC -Bowling Green, KY Office 814 State St. suite 100, Bowling Green, KY, 42101 (270) 517-2014
Minner Vines Injury Lawyers, PLLC – Nashville Office
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