All-way stop

An all-way stop (or four-way stop when there are four approaches to the intersection) is an intersection system used predominantly in the United States of America, Canada, and South Africa where traffic approaching it from all directions is required to stop before proceeding through the intersection. An all-way stop may have multiple approaches and may be marked with a supplemental plate stating the number of approaches.

A motorist approaching an all-way stop is always required to come to a full stop before the crosswalk or stop line. In most jurisdictions that use all-way stops, pedestrians always have priority at a crosswalk, even if the crosswalk is not delineated with pavement markings. Within some U.S. jurisdictions, such as the state of Idaho, bicyclists are exempt from the need to make a complete stop, but must give way to other vehicles as otherwise required by law. After a full-stop has been made, vehicles usually have the right-of-way to proceed through the intersection in the order that they arrived at the intersection. In the United States, if vehicles arrive at approximately the same time, each driver must yield to the drivers on their right, while in South Africa drivers must use common sense and make eye contact and gestures. Some areas have additional formal and informal rules which may or may not include special procedures for when all stop signs are approached simultaneously.

In the United States the Federal Highway Administration's Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD) defines the standards commonly used for the application of all-way stops. Where a stop has been determined to qualify, it is signed at all approaches to the intersections with a standard octagonal "Stop" sign, with a supplemental "ALL WAY" plaque. Earlier editions of the MUTCD allowed supplemental plaques specifying the number of approaches in an all-way stop, as in "3 WAY" or "4 WAY". According to the MUTCD, installation of an all-way stop should be based on a traffic engineering study to determine if minimum traffic volume or safety criteria are met. These intersections are often found where roads with considerably equal traffic levels meet each other but the overall level of traffic present at the intersection does not justify a traffic light, and or in a location where the right of way was otherwise unclear. An all-way stop may also be justified if the intersection has a demonstrated history of crashes in a given period of a type susceptible to correction by installing an all-way stop. All-way stops may also be used as an interim measure preceding the placement of a traffic light, to provide a low-speed area for pedestrians to cross, where a cross street experiences considerable difficulty finding safe gaps due to heavy traffic volumes, or where traffic is frequently delayed by turning conflicts. Additionally the MUTCD advocates the placement of all-way stops at intersections between through roads in residential areas if an engineering study can show that traffic flow would be improved by installing the all-way stop control. Despite published guidelines, all-way stops are routinely placed by jurisdictions due to political pressure from adjacent residents. Intersections between two minor highways with similar traffic counts, two collector roads in an urban or suburban setting or a collector road and a local road in a busy setting (such as near a school) are the most common locations for an all-way stop.

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