Priority over oncoming trafficPoland
28. Priority over oncoming traffic
Priority over oncoming traffic means that drivers travelling in one direction have priority through a narrow section of road over drivers approaching from the opposite direction. The rule is normally indicated by a priority sign facing one direction and a corresponding give-way sign facing the other.
Drivers with priority must still approach cautiously and must not force their way through when the passage is blocked or already occupied. The signs regulate priority through the narrow section, not speed, parking or priority at nearby intersections.
Wikimedia.org • Mkosmul • CC BY-SA
How is priority over oncoming traffic controlled in Poland?
Polish signs distinguish priority for opposing traffic from Pierwszeństwo na zwężonym odcinku jezdni, priority through the narrowed carriageway. Follow the direction controlled by the sign you face.
🔗 eli.gov.pl • Poland, Road Traffic Law — articles 3, 19, 23; Signs 25 and 46
Road narrowing, oncoming drivers have to give way.
English • Traffic sign D-5 • Priority at a narrow section. Sign D-5 means that drivers may drive or walk through before drivers approaching from the opposite direction.
Polski • D-5 • pierwszeństwo na zwężonym odcinku jezdni. Znak D-5 „pierwszeństwo na zwężonym odcinku jezdni” oznacza, że kierujący przejeżdżają lub przechodzą przed kierującymi zbliżającymi się z kierunku przeciwnego.
Sources
🔗 Commons.wikimedia.org
🔗 Eli.gov.pl • § 46 ust.
SVG source: Commons.wikimedia.org • Original SVG
Szczepan dyskusja Mail 18:29, 31 December 2006 (UTC) • Public domain • Original revision 2025-10-10. Wikimedia original unmodified.
Artwork reviewed against the Polish official sign catalogue, Dz.U. 2019 poz. 2310: Eli.gov.pl • D-5, PDF page 44, with amendments 2021/433, 2021/2065, 2022/2372 and 2026/133 checked. Catalogue-equivalent illustration; intentional update from the previous PNG. This is an educational illustration, not a manufacturing specification.
Can you enter an occupied narrow passage when you have priority in Poland?
Do not force a conflict. Check the full available width and let a vehicle already committed to the passage clear it when both vehicles cannot pass safely. A priority control does not permit creating danger or disregarding a red signal or authorised instruction.
🔗 eli.gov.pl • Poland, Road Traffic Law — articles 3, 19, 23; Signs 25 and 46
Does priority through a narrow passage extend to nearby junctions in Poland?
No. A control releasing your direction or giving priority over opposing traffic concerns that passage. Junction priority, speed limits, crossings and any later restriction must be assessed separately from their own signs and rules.
🔗 eli.gov.pl • Poland, Road Traffic Law — articles 3, 19, 23; Signs 25 and 46

Traffic rules
Poland