Y JUNCTIONS
What is a Y - Junction?
It is literally a T- Junction that has possibly a gentle angle arriving at it from one direction, to very tight angle from another direction.
Up to virtually 180 degrees from the direction you were initially travelling in.
This will all depend on which direction you are approaching the junction from.
But we call them Y Junctions because from above they look slightly Y shaped.
Y - Junctions can easily catch a driver out, as on approach to them they may just look like a standard T - Junction.
Turning into one too quickly could be extremely dangerous and could potentially put you on the wrong side of the road facing oncoming traffic or force you to oversteer and end up putting you on the pavement. Neither have good outcomes!
To help with working out if a junction is possibly a T or a Y junction there are tiny features that may help give the game away.
Oncoming traffic turning into the road, are they driving into it at a slight angle to you or at 90 degrees to you?
Vehicles emerging from the junction may give the same signs that an oncoming car may give, and they too may be pulling out at an angle.
Can you see houses that are in that road you are turning into?
Are they at an angle?
What sort of angle? Are they at 90degrees to the road you are coming from or as the picture below show, are they at a considerable angle from 90 degrees? The bigger the angle of the houses the bigger the angle may be of the road you are turning into.
Can you see a Give way sign at the end of that road?
On a typical T-Junctions you should never be able to see the Give Way sign, all you would be able to see is the post and the edge of the sign, you would not be able to read what the sign says.
The more you can see of the sign the tighter the turning is going to be.
Are tree lines or hedges running off at an angle or even telephone lines?
All these and other signs could give valuable information to making you slow down more as you approach it so that you can navigate it safer.
The safest and easiest way to consider junctions, is to treat them all as thought they are tight Y-Junctions, that way your approach speed will always be suitable for any condition. As you become more familiar of the roads you drive you will gain the knowledge of knowing whether the turning is tight or not.
Travelling from different directions can make navigating this type of junction easy or hard.
This also applies to emerging from one of these junctions.
When arriving at one and needing to emerge, it can be beneficial to tweak the final approach so that you turn your vehicle to give you the best line of sight up and down the major road.
Try and turn the Y-junction into a T-Junction by turning the steering quickly in the direction you want the car to go just as you get to the Give way line.
If you are unsure how to do this, speak with your instructor.