Bike stop or slow signal
A cyclist’s left arm held out with the forearm pointing down means they are stopping or slowing down.
How to read it
New York’s §1237 defines a bicyclist’s “stop or decrease speed” signal as “left hand and arm extended downward”, and the Texas Driver Handbook describes bicyclists “using their left arm pointed downward to signal a stop”. NHTSA’s hand signals handout describes the left or right arm out sideways, bent at a 90-degree angle at the elbow, hand pointing downwards and palm facing backwards. It is the same signal as a driver’s Stop or slow down hand signal.
Also searched as: bicycle stop signal, bike slow down signal, cycling stop hand signal.
Rules vary by state and country. This explains what each signal means in the state vehicle codes, driver handbooks and the UK Highway Code it cites; it isn’t legal advice.
Left arm or either arm
New York’s law and the Texas handbook name the left arm. NHTSA’s handout for young cyclists accepts either arm.
In the UK and Ireland
The slowing-down signal there is a straight arm moved up and down. The Highway Code shows a cyclist giving it with the right arm, and Ireland’s Road Traffic Regulations describe the right arm extended fully, palm turned downwards, moved slowly upwards and downwards. Hong Kong’s Road Users’ Code asks cyclists for the arm level with the shoulder, palm facing downwards, moved up and down at least three times. See UK arm signals (Highway Code).
Read next
- Next in Driving and cycling hand signalsUK arm signals (Highway Code)The arm signals in the UK Highway Code. The one most unlike the US signals is slowing down or stopping: the right arm held out, palm down, and moved up and down.
- The same shape in Packaging symbolsTidyman (litter bin symbol)A reminder not to drop litter. It is a trademark of the charity Keep Britain Tidy and says nothing about whether the packaging can be recycled.
More driving and cycling hand signals
The same shape elsewhere
Browse symbols drawn with lines.
Sources
- New York Vehicle and Traffic Law §1237: Method of giving hand and arm signals by bicyclists, N.Y. Veh. & Traf. Law §1237, New York State Senate, §1237(1)–(3)
- Texas Driver Handbook (DL-7), DL-7, revised January 2026, chapters 6 and 9, Texas Department of Public Safety, Chapter 6, How to Signal; Bicycles, Do’s
- Hand Signals (handout 8009), NHTSA handout 8009-082912-v2, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Hand Signals: left turn, right turn, alternative right turn, stopping or slowing
- The Highway Code: Signals to other road users, The Highway Code (updated 22 October 2025), Department for Transport (GOV.UK), Arm signals
- Road Traffic (Traffic and Parking) Regulations 1997, Second Schedule: Signals, S.I. No. 182 of 1997, Second Schedule, Table A, Law Reform Commission of Ireland (Revised Acts), Table A: Signals to other road users
- Road Users’ Code, chapter 4 (for cyclists): Giving signals, Road Users’ Code, Transport Department, Hong Kong, Slowing down signal
Researched, edited and approved by Rory Hansen before publishing. Last reviewed October 9, 2026. How we research
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