This Florida guide translates key parts of the Florida Statutes into plain-English driving rules you can actually use on the road. You will find what the double-yellow actually means in daily traffic, when a right turn on red is legal, how left turns and U-turns work across centerlines, what painted medians mean, when you must stop for a school bus, and how obstruction exceptions apply. We include real-world examples, common ticket pitfalls, and links to official sources so you can verify each point for yourself.
Florida boulevards often combine right-on-red opportunities with double-yellow centerlines and posted restrictions at key corridors.
What Florida's no-passing law (§316.0875) bans—and what it narrowly allows
Florida's no-passing law is built around safety on two-lane and multi-lane corridors. A standard double yellow marks a no-passing zone. Drivers may not use the opposing lane to overtake another vehicle. The one narrow carve-out is obstruction avoidance: if debris, a disabled vehicle, a fallen branch, or a flooded patch blocks your lane, Florida permits you to steer left only as far as necessary to bypass the hazard and then return promptly. This is not permission to accelerate and pass moving traffic; it is a short-distance safety maneuver.
Obstruction avoidance across a double yellow in Florida
The key questions are necessity and timing. Could you safely stop and wait? Is there a reasonable gap with clear sight distance? If the answer is yes and yes, you may edge across the centerline to slip around the obstacle while yielding to oncoming traffic. Signal early, scan far ahead, and keep your wheels aligned to minimize the time spent left of center.
Cross the double yellow only as far as necessary to avoid an obstruction, then return promptly to your lane.
"Only as far as necessary" and prompt return
The statute contemplates a quick, surgical maneuver. If an officer observes you lingering in the opposing lane or accelerating to pass a slow car in addition to the hazard, the exception evaporates. Documenting the obstruction with dashcam footage can help if a dispute arises.
Work-zone flaggers override lane markings
Florida's temporary traffic control plans and flagger instructions supersede centerlines. If a certified flagger waves you across the double yellow, follow the direction exactly and return to your lane as the taper indicates. Cones and channelizing devices will often create a short contra-flow lane to guide you.
Sample citation wording under §316.0875
Tickets typically reference "Improper passing in no-passing zone" or "Drove left of center in no-passing area." Your notes should reference the obstruction, location, and why stopping in-lane would have been a greater hazard.
Painted or flush medians vs. standard double yellow
Florida uses two similar-looking but legally distinct markings. A standard double yellow is a centerline you must not cross to pass. Two sets of double yellow with cross-hatching form a painted or flush median, functionally a barrier. Do not cross a flush median except at a legal opening designed for turns. These openings are usually paired with stop bars, signing, and sometimes a protected phase at signals.
Two sets of double-yellow with cross-hatching act like a median. Use only at signed openings.
Cross-hatched median islands = no crossing
When the median area is filled with diagonal stripes, treat it like a raised island. It separates opposing flows and reserves space for turn pockets. Driving or stopping within the hatching invites citations and is unsafe.
Legal openings and channelized left-turn bays
Where a white crosswalk-style opening interrupts the hatching, a left into a driveway or side street may be permitted. Yield carefully to opposing traffic and watch for pedestrians crossing the median refuge.
Night visibility, reflectors, and sight-distance checks
Reflective raised markers often outline Florida medians. At night, ensure you can see far enough to complete the turn. If glare, rain, or curves limit visibility, wait for a larger gap.
Right turn on red in Florida: complete stop, signs, pedestrians
Florida generally allows a right turn on red after a full stop unless a sign prohibits it. The stop must be made at the limit line or before the crosswalk; then drivers must yield to pedestrians, cyclists, and opposing traffic. A time plaque under a "NO TURN ON RED" sign (for example, 7–9 AM) means the ban applies only during the posted times.
Read "NO TURN ON RED" and time-based plaques
Look for plaque qualifiers, school-hour language, or arrows that apply to a specific lane. If you see a red arrow, the arrow controls your lane and bans turns against it unless a sign explicitly allows it.
School-hour restrictions and arrow signals
Near campuses, Florida cities commonly restrict right on red during drop-off windows. Arrow indications can also require a protected green before turning. Always check both mast arm and near-side posts.
Pedestrian & cyclist right-of-way at crosswalks
Pedestrians have priority once they enter the crosswalk. Blocking the crosswalk while inching forward can draw a citation and endanger people you cannot see in the near-side lane.
Red-light camera enforcement pitfalls
Rolling through without a complete stop is the most common camera violation. Make an obvious, complete stop, check both directions, then turn if it is safe and legal.
Left turns and U-turns across double yellow in Florida
A left across a standard double yellow into a driveway or street is allowed when no signs prohibit it and traffic conditions make it safe. If a physical or painted median exists, use only the designated opening. For U-turns, Florida requires adequate sight distance and compliance with signs and signals.
U-turns require adequate sight distance and must yield to all traffic. Obey NO U-TURN signs.
When a left across double yellow is permitted
Driveways and side streets without median barriers
On many suburban arterials, you may turn left across a normal double yellow to enter a driveway. Yield to through traffic and avoid blocking the median refuge if one exists.
Two-stage turn using a center left-turn lane
Some corridors provide a center two-way left-turn lane. Use it to stage the turn and clear the through lanes more quickly.
Avoiding conflict with opposing left-turners
Enter the center lane with your nose angled away from opposing traffic. This increases visibility and reduces risk of a left-front crash.
U-turn rules: visibility, signs, and intersections
"NO U-TURN" control and signalized U-turns
If the sign prohibits U-turns, honor it. Otherwise, you may perform a U-turn where sight distance is long enough and the geometry allows a single smooth movement without backing.
Minimum sight distance and lane selection
As a rule of thumb, do not U-turn on crests, in short gaps, or near driveways that could feed conflicting traffic. Finish the turn into the nearest legal lane.
Examples of legal vs. unsafe U-turn setups
A protected U-turn pocket at a signal is safest. A mid-block U-turn across multiple lanes and a flush median is typically unsafe and may violate markings.
Florida school-bus stop law (§316.172): stop both ways, divided exceptions
When a school bus displays red flashers and extends the stop arm, drivers on the same roadway must stop. On undivided roads, that means traffic in both directions. On divided highways with a physical median (raised curb, grass strip, barrier), traffic traveling in the opposite direction does not stop, though caution is still expected.
Undivided: everyone stops. Divided with a physical median: only the same-direction traffic must stop.
When traffic in both directions must stop
Red flashers + stop arm extended
Yellow flashers warn that a stop is imminent; red flashers mean stop. Do not advance until the bus cancels the signal and moves or the driver waves you through.
Lanes in the same roadway must stop
Multi-lane same-direction traffic must all stop behind the bus. Do not pass on the shoulder or use turn lanes to sneak by.
Passing on the shoulder is illegal
Shoulder passing around a bus is a severe safety violation and frequently cited near campuses.
Divided highway exceptions with physical median
Raised curbs, grass strips, or barriers
A truly divided highway has a physical separation. Painted medians do not count. If a curb or barrier exists, opposing traffic may proceed cautiously while the bus serves students on the far side.
Painted median without a physical barrier is not divided
Many Florida arterials have cross-hatched medians that look like islands but are still flush pavement. Treat these as the same roadway: stop in both directions.
Caution around multi-lane arterials near schools
Heavy lane changes, mid-block driveways, and turning bays complicate visibility. Slow early and scan for kids crossing from parked cars.
