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Regulatory signs · MUTCD R3-5

What does the Mandatory Movement Lane Control sign mean?

The Mandatory Movement Lane Control sign (MUTCD R3-5) is a regulatory sign under the federal Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices, the national standard the states build from. Traffic in this lane must travel in the direction the arrow shows.

Source: MUTCD 11th Edition, Chapter 2B, Table 2B-1, checked 2026-09-09.

Mandatory Movement Lane Control sign, MUTCD R3-5
Mandatory Movement Lane Control, the federal MUTCD design.

What shape and color is the Mandatory Movement Lane Control sign?

MUTCD codeR3-5
GroupRegulatory signs
ShapeVertical rectangle
ColorWhite background, black arrow and border

What a vertical rectangle means. Usually regulatory: a law you must obey. Speed limits, turn restrictions and parking rules take this shape.

What white means. Regulatory. A black legend on a white background is a law, not advice.

Regulatory signs. Every sign in this group has a statute behind it, so disobeying one is a citable offense on its own. Permit tests tend to word them as a duty you owe rather than show you the face.

What is the Mandatory Movement Lane Control sign often mistaken for?

Optional Movement Lane Control (R3-6), which shows a straight arrow and a turn arrow together and lets you choose. R3-5 gives no choice.

The Mandatory Movement Lane Control sign compared side by side with the Optional Movement Lane Control sign
Mandatory Movement Lane Control sign
Mandatory Movement Lane Controlthis sign
Optional Movement Lane Control sign
Optional Movement Lane ControlR3-6
GroupRegulatory signsGroupRegulatory signs
ShapeVertical rectangleShapeVertical rectangle
ColorWhite background, black arrow and borderColorWhite background, black arrows and border
What it meansTraffic in this lane must travel in the direction the arrow shows.What it meansFrom this lane you may go straight through or make the turn shown.

What are the other regulatory signs?

In-Street Pedestrian Crossing sign
In-Street Pedestrian CrossingR1-6
Speed Limit sign
Speed LimitR2-1
No Right Turn sign
No Right TurnR3-1
No Left Turn sign
No Left TurnR3-2
No Turns sign
No TurnsR3-3
No U-Turn sign
No U-TurnR3-4
Optional Movement Lane Control sign
Optional Movement Lane ControlR3-6
Right (Left) Lane Must Turn Right (Left) sign
Right (Left) Lane Must Turn Right (Left)R3-7
Advance Intersection Lane Control sign
Advance Intersection Lane ControlR3-8
Two-Way Left Turn Only sign
Two-Way Left Turn OnlyR3-9b
Do Not Pass sign
Do Not PassR4-1
Pass With Care sign
Pass With CareR4-2

All 39 regulatory signs on one page, or every US road sign by shape and color.

Test yourself on this sign and the rest of the set with a road signs practice test for Florida, Texas or California.

The artwork is the federal design itself, which the manual dedicates to the public domain in MUTCD 11th Edition, Part 1, Section 1D.06, checked 2026-09-09. The Interstate Shield, the 511 pictograph and the National Scenic Byway graphic are named exceptions and are not reproduced anywhere on this site.

Source: Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices, 11th Edition. Not affiliated with or endorsed by the Federal Highway Administration or any state agency.