Chapter 5 - part 4 - giving priority

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Reference articles from the legislation in force

OUG = EMERGENCY ORDINANCE no. 195 of December 12, 2002 (Road Traffic Code)
Regulation = REGULATION for the implementation of OUG 195/2002 (Road Traffic Code Regulation)

OUG - Article 6

For the purposes of this emergency ordinance, the expressions and terms below have the following meaning:

1. giving priority - the obligation of any participant in traffic not to continue their movement or not to perform any other maneuver, if through these they oblige the other participants in traffic who have priority of passage to suddenly change their direction or speed of movement or to stop;

OUG - Article 37

(1) The drivers of vehicles are obliged to stop immediately, on the shoulder or, in its absence, as close as possible to the edge of the road or the curb of the sidewalk, in the direction of movement, at the approach and the passing of the motor vehicles with priority traffic regime which have in operation the special red light and sound warning means.

(2) The drivers of vehicles are obliged to reduce the speed, to drive as close as possible to the edge of the road in the direction of movement and to give priority at the passing of the motor vehicles with priority traffic regime which have in operation the special blue light and sound warning means.

(3) In the situations provided in paragraph (1) and (2), the pedestrians are prohibited the crossing and the movement on the carriageway until the passing of the respective vehicles.

OUG - Article 43

(2) The driver of a vehicle who travels on the lane located next to the edge of the carriageway must give way to the vehicles that carry out public transport of persons only when their drivers signal the intention to re-enter the traffic from the stations provided with bays and have made sure that through their maneuver they do not endanger the safety of the other participants in traffic.

OUG - Article 54

(1) The driver of a vehicle who performs a maneuver of changing the direction of movement, of leaving a row of stopped vehicles or of entering such a row, of passing on another traffic lane or of turning right or left or who is going to perform a U-turn or to move in reverse is obliged to signal in time and to make sure that they can do it without disturbing the traffic or endangering the safety of the other participants in traffic.

OUG - Article 57

(1) At the intersections with undirected traffic, the driver of a vehicle is obliged to give way to the vehicles coming from the right side, under the conditions established by the regulation.

​OUG - Article 59

(1) In the intersections with undirected traffic, the driver of a vehicle is obliged to give priority of passage to the vehicles that travel on rails. These lose the priority of passage when performing the left turn or when the traffic signalling in that area establishes another traffic rule.

Regulation - Article 106

(1) On a public road provided with minimum 3 lanes per direction, when the drivers of two motor vehicles travel in the same direction, but on different lanes, and intend to move into the free lane between them, the one who travels on the lane on the right is obliged to allow the one coming from the left to occupy that lane.

(2) On the public road with several lanes, the drivers of motor vehicles who travel on a lane that ends, in order to continue the movement on the lane on the left must allow the passing of the vehicles that travel on that lane.

Regulation - Article 107

(4) In the case in which the tram is stopped in a station without refuge for pedestrians, the vehicles must stop in the order of arrival, behind it, and resume their movement only after the doors of the tram have been closed and have made sure that they do not endanger the safety of the pedestrians engaged in the crossing of the public road.

Regulation - Article 125

In order to be able to turn the vehicle from one direction of movement to the other through maneuvering forward and backward or through turning, its driver is obliged to signal and to make sure that from the front, from the back or from the side no vehicle travels at that moment.

Regulation - Article 130

The driver of a vehicle who approaches the entry into an intersection, simultaneously with a motor vehicle with priority traffic regime which has in operation the light and sound signals, has the obligation to give it priority of passage.

Regulation - Article 131

(1) When approaching a station for public transport means for persons provided with a bay, from which the driver of such a vehicle signals the intention to exit, the driver of the vehicle who travels on the lane next to the shoulder or the curb is obliged to reduce the speed and, if necessary, to stop to allow its re-entry into the traffic.

(2) The drivers of vehicles are obliged to give priority of passage to the pedestrians who are on the carriageway to get into the tram or after they have got off it, if the tram is stopped in a station without refuge.

Regulation - Article 132

The driver of the vehicle whose forward movement is obstructed by an obstacle or by the presence of other participants in traffic, which imposes the passing on the opposite direction, is obliged to reduce the speed and, if necessary, to stop to allow the passing of the vehicles that travel from the opposite direction.

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Text version Chapter 5 - part 4 - giving priority

Giving priority (loss of priority) is the obligation of the participants in traffic to give priority of passage to those who have this right. They have the obligation not to continue their movement or not to perform any other maneuver, if through these they oblige the other participants in traffic who have priority of passage to suddenly change their direction or speed of movement or to stop (art. 6 point 1 from OUG). It is the reverse situation of the priority of passage, because when encountering two vehicles whose trajectories intersect or when both cannot pass at the same time, one has priority and the other loses the priority.

The priority is lost in the following cases:

• At the intersections undirected of roads of the same category, lose the priority the vehicles that travel from the left side compared to those that travel from the right side. This is also valid in cases of equality (art. 57 paragraph 1 from OUG).

• Lose the priority in the intersections the vehicles that perform the left turn compared to the vehicles with which they intersect and which travel from the right side (is considered equality situation) (art. 59 paragraph 2 from OUG);

• Lose the priority the vehicles that encounter the sign “Stop” compared to the vehicles that travel on the priority road. The driver of a vehicle who encounters this sign is obliged to stop in the place with maximum visibility, being able to pass the sign but without exceeding the corner of the intersection, and staying in place to give priority to all the vehicles that travel on the priority road. Attention, even if on the priority road no other vehicles travel at that moment, stopping is mandatory.

• Lose the priority the vehicles that encounter the sign “Give way” compared to the vehicles that travel on the priority road. The driver of a vehicle who encounters this sign is obliged to reduce the speed and to make sure that on the priority road no other vehicles travel, and only then can enter the intersection. If on the priority road other vehicles travel, the driver is obliged to stop to give them priority.

• Lose the priority the vehicles that encounter the sign “Priority for the traffic from the opposite direction” compared to the vehicles that travel from the opposite direction. When encountering this sign, the driver of a vehicle loses the priority compared to all the vehicles that travel from the opposite direction.

• Lose the priority the vehicles that encounter motor vehicles with priority traffic regime, which have in operation the special light and sound warning means, in any situation they encounter (art. 130 from Regulation and art. 37 paragraph 1, 2 and 3 from OUG).

• Lose the priority the vehicles that encounter the trams in movement at the passing through the undirected intersections. Attention, only in the undirected intersections the vehicles that travel on rails have special priority of passage (art. 59 paragraph 1 from OUG).

• Loses the priority the tram that performs the left turn in an undirected intersection, compared to the vehicles that travel from the opposite direction, if the traffic signalling in the area does not establish another rule (art. 59 paragraph 1 from OUG).

• Lose the priority the vehicles that change the traffic lane compared to the vehicles that travel on the lane on which they want to enter (art. 54 paragraph 1 from OUG);

• On the public road with several lanes, the drivers of motor vehicles who travel on a lane that ends and want to continue the movement on the lane on the left, lose the priority and must allow the passing of the vehicles that travel on that lane (art. 106 paragraph 2 from Regulation).

• On a public road provided with minimum 3 lanes per direction, when the drivers of two motor vehicles travel in the same direction, but on different lanes, and intend to move into the free lane between them, the one who travels on the lane on the right loses the priority and is obliged to allow the one who comes from the left to occupy that lane (art. 106 paragraph 1 from Regulation). For example, in this situation the motor vehicle on lane 1 loses the priority compared to the motor vehicle on lane 3;

• Lose the priority the vehicles that travel on lane 1 compared to the public transport vehicles of persons, when these start moving from the stations provided with bay and have signalled accordingly. It is to be noted that only the vehicles that travel on lane 1 have this obligation, not those on the other lanes, in the case in which the road has several traffic lanes per direction (art. 43 paragraph 2 from OUG and art. 131 paragraph 1 from Regulation).

• Lose the priority the vehicles that perform a maneuver of U-turn compared to those that are in movement on the public road, regardless of the direction they come from (art. 125 from Regulation);

• Loses the priority the vehicle that travels behind a tram stopped in a station without refuge compared to the pedestrians who are on the carriageway to get into the tram or after they have got off it. They can resume their movement only after the doors of the tram have been closed and have made sure that they do not endanger the safety of the pedestrians engaged in the crossing of the public road. (art. 131 paragraph 2 from Regulation and art. 107 paragraph 4 from Regulation).

• Loses the priority the vehicle whose forward movement is obstructed by an obstacle or by the presence of other participants in traffic, which imposes the passing on the opposite direction, being obliged to reduce the speed and, if necessary, to stop to allow the passing of the vehicles that travel from the opposite direction (art. 132 from Regulation);