MUTCD R4-17 · Regulatory signs
Prohibits driving on the shoulder of the roadway
What it means
Prohibits driving on the shoulder of the roadway.
What to do about it
It is a regulatory sign: it states a law you must obey, not a suggestion. Ignoring it is a citable violation. (MUTCD R4-17.)
Practice this on the real test format
Signs are the part of the DMV written test people fail on, because reading them is a skill rather than a fact to memorize. Aprobify drills all 1034 of them, and tells you why each answer is what it is.
Get the appSign designations follow the MUTCD and the California MUTCD published by Caltrans; meanings are checked against the California Driver's Handbook (DL 600, rev. 6/2025). Edited by Fernando Aguilera. Aprobify is not affiliated with the California DMV.
Signs in the same family
These sit next to it in the regulatory signs series — the ones most easily mixed up with it.
- R4-12 Requires slow vehicles with five or more following vehicles to use turn-out areas
- R4-13 Slow vehicles to use the upcoming turn-out area
- R4-14 Requires slow vehicles to turn out at this location
- R4-16 Directs traffic to keep right except when passing other vehicles
- R4-18 Prohibits passing other vehicles using the shoulder
- R4-19 Required clearance distance when passing bicycles
