2026-11-11
Road signs people get wrong on the learner's test
The road signs section of the learner’s licence test is the strictest one. You need at least 23 out of 28, so five wrong answers is the most you can afford (DLTC requirements, item 5.4). Most mistakes come from a handful of pairs that look alike or sound alike.
Everything below comes from the Department of Transport’s Learner Driver Manual, Section 2: Road Traffic Signs (version 1.02, October 2026), the official study guide for the signs in the National Road Traffic Regulations and the SA Road Traffic Signs Manual. Numbers such as R1.1 are the official sign numbers.
The groups: what a sign is trying to do
The manual splits road traffic signs into six groups. The shape tells you the group before you read the symbol.
| Group | What it does | Usual shape |
|---|---|---|
| Regulatory signs | Control what you may or must do. Breaking them is an offence | Round |
| Warning signs | Warn you in time about danger on or next to the road | Triangular |
| Guidance signs | Help you find your way | Rectangular |
| Information signs | Give general information | Rectangular |
| Road markings | Lines and symbols on the road surface | On the road |
| Traffic signals | Robots and other lights | Lights |
The common mistake is treating a warning sign as an instruction. A warning sign tells you what is ahead (a crossroad, a sharp bend, a stop sign you cannot see yet). A regulatory sign gives the order: “Failure to obey these signs is an offence and is punishable by a fine or imprisonment or both,” says the manual.
The exceptions to “regulatory signs are round”
These break the shape rule:
- the stop sign is octagonal (eight sides)
- the yield sign is a triangle
- pedestrian priority signs are diamond shaped
So a triangle is not always a warning sign. A triangle standing on its point is the yield sign, and it is regulatory.
Yellow background means temporary
A sign with a yellow background is a temporary sign. It is used when normal conditions have changed for minutes, hours or months, such as road works or a collision scene. Its number starts with T (for example TW412). The manual’s message for temporary signs is that normal standards do not apply, so you must pay more attention to what is happening around you.
Regulatory signs have sub-groups
The manual divides regulatory signs into eight sub-groups. The ones that cause the most trouble:
- Command signs tell you what you must do, for example the minimum speed sign (R101): do not drive slower than the speed shown.
- Prohibition signs tell you what you may not do, for example the speed limit (R201) or no right turn (R212). With no right turn shown, you may still go straight or turn left.
- De-restriction signs (R600) cancel a restriction. They look like the original sign with a cross through it. From that sign on, the restriction no longer applies.
Stop versus yield
Stop sign (R1.1). Bring the vehicle to a complete stop behind the stop line. If there is no stop line, stop with the front of your vehicle in line with the sign. Rolling slowly past is not stopping. At a three-way stop (R1.3) or four-way stop (R1.4), the vehicle that stopped first moves off first, and you may not move off before the vehicles that stopped before you have gone.
Yield sign (R2). If other traffic is approaching, slow down and stop if you need to. If the road is clear, you do not have to stop.
Stop/yield sign (R1.2). This one mixes the two. If you are going straight, stop behind the line. If you are turning left, you may do so without stopping, but you must yield to traffic that is close enough to be a danger.
A stop line painted on the road (RTM1) has the same meaning as a stop sign even if there is no sign. A yield line (RTM2) means you give way to anyone crossing your path at that point.
No stopping versus no parking
Parking prohibited (R216). You may not park. You may still stop briefly, for example to let a passenger out.
Stopping prohibited (R217). You may not stop at all, unless a robot or a traffic officer tells you to, or to avoid a collision.
The road markings follow the same logic:
- No stopping line (RM12): except in an emergency, do not stop. If the line is broken, the ban applies during the times shown on a sign.
- No parking line (RM13): you may stop for short periods but may not park.
What counts as parking? The manual says a vehicle is parked when it stands still (engine running or not) for longer than it takes to load or off-load goods or passengers. Waiting ten minutes for a friend with the engine running is parking.
What robots mean, including the flashing ones
The manual lists what each light means. The flashing ones are where marks get lost:
| Light | What you do |
|---|---|
| Red | Stop |
| Amber | Stop, unless you cannot do so safely |
| Green | Go, if it is safe |
| Flashing red signal | Stop, then go when it is safe, as at a stop sign |
| Flashing red at a railway crossing | A train is coming. Do not go until the light stops flashing |
| Flashing amber disc | Drive on carefully, but yield to pedestrians, who may cross |
| Flashing green arrow | You have right of way in the direction of the arrow |
| Constant amber arrow | Stop and wait until the flashing green arrow shows you may go |
| Flashing red arrow to the left | After stopping, you may turn left if there is no traffic, yielding to pedestrians and other traffic |
Note the two flashing reds: at an intersection, treat it as a stop sign; at a railway crossing, wait.
When a robot is out of order, the temporary sign TW412 may be put up. The manual says: slow down, yield to other traffic, be ready to stop if the traffic needs it, and look out for a traffic officer or a stop sign controlling the intersection.
How to learn signs so they stick
- Learn the group first (shape), then the meaning. If you know a round sign is regulatory and a triangle on its base is a warning, you can often rule out answers before you read the symbol properly.
- Practise the pairs on purpose: stop and yield, stop and stop/yield, no stopping and no parking, the two flashing reds.
The free Kerbtest sample has 10 questions with the reason for each answer, if you want to check yourself.