Road narrows sign UK: meaning, types and safety tips

All warning signs, from crossroads signs to the road narrows sign, help keep UK roads safe. Warning signs tell you about a hazard ahead. Other signs give orders that you must obey, such as the No Entry sign. Every driver needs to recognise them quickly.

The road narrows sign warns that the road ahead gets narrower, so there will be less room for you and for traffic coming the other way. Check your mirrors, slow down and be ready to give way.

There are 2 versions of the sign. One shows the road narrowing on both sides. The other shows it narrowing on one side: the right, or the left if the symbol is reversed. Look closely at the sign so you know which side of the road will narrow.

A plate below the sign can give more detail, for example single-file traffic in each direction, or a road wide enough for only one line of vehicles.

The sign warns you of a change in the road that could be dangerous, often on a single carriageway road where it narrows and there is not enough room to pass another vehicle safely. Slow down, and look well ahead for oncoming traffic, cyclists and people walking.

Do not overtake where the road narrows, because you might come into conflict with other road users (Highway Code rule 167).

The road narrows sign is often used at road works, where part of the road is closed and the lanes that are left are narrower. You will see it with other road works signs. At road works, follow all the signs. You MUST NOT go over any temporary speed limit, and where lanes are closed you should merge in turn (rule 288). Keep a safe distance from the vehicle in front and make sure you can see the edges of the lane ahead.

In towns and villages, the road may be made narrower on purpose, with build-outs on one or both sides, to slow traffic down. Signs and Give Way markings may show who has priority through the narrowing. Where there is no priority, keep a steady low speed, be ready to give way to traffic coming towards you, give cyclists and motorcyclists room to pass through, and do not overtake (rule 153).

Many country lanes and old town streets are narrow, because they were built long before cars. Some are single-track roads, only wide enough for one vehicle, with passing places. The road narrows sign gives you time to get ready before you reach them.

The road narrows sign is a warning sign, so it is a triangle with a red border and a black symbol on a white background. The symbol shows a road whose edges move in, so you know at a glance whether it narrows on both sides or on one.

The road narrows sign is often confused with the dual carriageway ends sign. The dual carriageway ends sign shows 2 separate carriageways, side by side, joining into one road. It warns that the central reservation is ending and that traffic will soon come towards you on the same road. The road narrows sign shows a single road whose edges move in.

There are also signs that give an order about who goes first where a road or bridge is very narrow:

• Give way to oncoming vehicles: a red circle with a small red arrow pointing up, for your direction, and a larger black arrow pointing down, for oncoming traffic. You must give priority to traffic from the other direction. There is usually a Give Way line to show where to wait.

• Priority over oncoming vehicles: a blue rectangle with a large white arrow pointing up, for your direction, and a smaller red arrow pointing down. Traffic in your direction has priority, but be ready to stop if an oncoming driver does not give way.

Other warning signs tell you about the shape of the road ahead, such as sharp bends, double bends and hidden dips.

Drive at a speed that lets you stop within the distance you can see to be clear (rule 154). Where the road narrows, slow down and keep well to the left, without getting too close to the kerb or the verge. Use your mirrors to check what is behind you before you slow down or change position.

If a cyclist or horse rider is ahead, wait behind them until it is safe to pass. When you overtake a cyclist at up to 30 mph, leave at least 1.5 metres. Pass horse riders at under 10 mph and leave at least 2 metres (rule 163). If there is not enough room, stay behind.

Some learners get nervous when they see the road narrows sign. Stay calm, slow down, and keep to a speed you are comfortable with.

Two common mistakes are going too fast and misjudging the width of the road, so that the driver goes too close to the kerb or the verge, or onto it. Practise with your instructor so you can judge where your car is on the road.

On a single-track road, use the passing places. If a vehicle comes towards you, or a driver behind wants to overtake, pull into a passing place on your left, or wait opposite one on your right. Give way to traffic coming uphill when you can. If you need to, reverse to a passing place. Do not park in passing places (rules 155 and 156).

On country roads you may meet slow farm vehicles, animals, mud on the road, people walking and horse riders. In rain, snow or ice, narrow roads can be even harder to drive on, so take extra care.

Give yourself extra time. You will drive more slowly, and you may get stuck behind a slower vehicle, so be patient. If you meet oncoming traffic and neither of you has priority, be ready to give way. Do not take a flash of another driver's headlights as a signal to go. Flashing headlights should only be used to let other road users know you are there (rules 110 and 111), so use your own judgement.

To get your UK driving licence you need to know what this sign means. In the practical test, the examiner will not ask you what signs mean. They watch how you drive: that you see the sign in time, check your mirrors, slow down, and give way when you need to.

In the theory test you may be shown a picture of the road narrows sign and asked to choose its meaning from a list of answers. You may also be asked which side the road will narrow on. Learn how it differs from the dual carriageway ends sign.

Learn the Highway Code rules about narrow roads, especially rules 153 to 156. For example, you may be asked whether you should keep the same speed or slow down as you enter a narrow road. The answer is to slow down. You may also be asked who has priority. Where signs give priority to one direction, you must follow them. Where there are no signs, nobody has priority, so be ready to give way.

On a narrow road you may meet other cars, people walking, cyclists, horse riders, farm vehicles and animals, so drive slowly enough to stop if you need to.

Road narrows signs warn you before the road gets narrower, so you can slow down and get into position in good time instead of finding out too late. Together with low bridge signs and the other warning signs in the Highway Code, they help traffic keep moving safely.

Sign pictures: drawings of the official UK traffic signs from Wikimedia Commons. Some are in the public domain. The others contain public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v1.0.