When making a right turn at a red light, what must you do?

When making a right turn at a red light, the driver is required to come to a complete stop before proceeding and must yield to pedestrians and other traffic. This requirement ensures the safety of those crossing the street or merging into the lane, as it allows the driver to assess the intersection clearly before moving.

By stopping completely, the driver has the opportunity to look for pedestrians who may legally cross the street, as well as to identify any other vehicles that may be approaching. Yielding means allowing those road users the right of way, thus preventing potential accidents and ensuring a smoother flow of traffic.

In this context, simply yielding to traffic would be insufficient because it does not account for the safety of pedestrians who might be present. Signaling right without stopping would ignore the legal requirement to stop at a red light, and proceeding if the intersection is clear does not adequately encompass the need to yield to pedestrians. Therefore, coming to a complete stop and yielding to pedestrians and traffic is both a legal mandate and a critical safety measure.