Ch. 1 · Common Conduct

A lane with a bus-only lane marking cannot be used by any vehicles, so general vehicles must not enter even in emergencies.

[True / False · Medium]

Answer: ✕ False

Explanation

A bus-only lane is a regulatory marking defined by Road Traffic Act §20 and the Rules of the Road Ch.1 §2. In principle non-bus vehicles cannot use it, but exceptions exist for right/left turns, where signs or markings expressly permit it, or for emergency vehicles (§20(3)). "No vehicles can use it" and "entry prohibited in any case" are incorrect — operating hours and exception conditions must be checked.

Driving school curriculumStage 1 – Topic 2: Following traffic signals

Hikari
Hikari
Bus-only means buses only, right? So we can't enter even if there's an emergency?
Yui
Yui
Actually, that's false! There are exceptions — emergency vehicles can use it, and regular cars can too when turning or where signs permit.
Hikari
Hikari
Oh, so it's not as absolute as it sounds!
Yui
Yui
Exactly. Always check for operating hours and exception signs — "bus-only" has more flex than you'd think!

Source: Ch. 1 Common Conduct · Section (第２節 信号) · Rules of the Road, Ch.5 §2 (Where vehicles drive) / 6(2) On roads where an exclusive lane for route buses and the like is designated by a sign (Appendix 3(1) No. 33) or marking (Appendix 3(2) No. 15), vehicles other than small special vehicles, mopeds, and light vehicles must not travel in that lane — except in cases such as moving to the right edge, center, or left edge of the road to turn right or left, or when unavoidable because of roadworks and the like. / Appendix 3(2)(a) No. 15 “Exclusive Lane”.

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Source content excerpted from the NPA “Rules of the Road” instructional manual, in the public domain under Japanese Copyright Act Article 13(2). Explanations are AI-assisted and copyrighted by the MenkyoQuest editorial team.