Two-way traffic sign
A yellow diamond with two arrows side by side, pointing opposite ways. It warns that the road ahead carries traffic in both directions.
How to read it
The MUTCD uses it where a divided road with several lanes becomes a two-lane, two-way road, and, with an AHEAD plaque, where a one-way street becomes two-way. It may also be repeated along a two-way road.
Rules vary by state and country. This explains the sign's standard meaning in the U.S. Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices; it isn't legal advice.
Where you'll see it
It may back up the Divided Highway Ends sign. It is also a work-zone sign: when one roadway of a divided highway is closed and both directions share the other, the 11th edition (2023) says it should be used where the two-way section begins and repeated at intervals.
Look-alikes
The Two-Direction Large Arrow sign (W1-7) also has arrows pointing both ways, but it is a horizontal rectangle on the far side of a T-intersection, facing traffic on the stem. The orange Narrow Two-Way Traffic sign (W6-4), at least 30 by 46 cm (12 by 18 in), stands on flexible supports in a row along the centre line of a work zone to separate the two directions.
In other countries
Britain's warning signs are red triangles. The Department for Transport's guide has one for two-way traffic and another for two-way traffic on a route crossing ahead.
Read next
- Next in Road signsSlippery when wet signA yellow diamond with a car leaving two wavy skid marks. It warns of a road surface that can become unexpectedly slippery.
- The same shape in Flowchart symbolsDecisionA point where the flow branches. The decision symbol is a diamond holding a question or condition, with one path leaving it for each possible answer, often labelled Yes and No.
More road signs
The same shape elsewhere
Browse symbols drawn with arrows or diamonds.
Sources
- MUTCD 2009 Edition, Chapter 2C: Warning Signs and Object Markers, MUTCD 2009, Part 2, U.S. Federal Highway Administration, Section 2C.44
- Pennsylvania Driver's Manual, Chapter 2: Signals, Signs and Pavement Markings, Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, p. 15
- Official Florida Driver License Handbook, rev. 08/2023, Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles, p. 50
- Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices for Streets and Highways, 11th edition, MUTCD, U.S. Federal Highway Administration, Section 2C.51, para 03 (printed p. 189); Section 2C.43, paras 01–02 (p. 180); Sections 6H.16 and 6H.17 (p. 805)
- Know Your Traffic Signs, Sixth edition, 2023, UK Department for Transport, pp. 9, 11
Researched, edited and approved by Rory Hansen before publishing. Last reviewed October 3, 2026. How we research
Added . Last updated .