Speed Limits & Following Distance — British Columbia
British Columbia ICBC motorcycle knowledge test practice: 90 free practice questions (Based on the official driver handbook). Official test format: 40 Q, pass 32. Speed Limits & Following Distance: 12 questions.
Posted speed limits, school and construction zones, stopping and following distance.
This topic page is still being reviewed against the official handbook. Until review is finished it is hidden from search engines.
| Topic / Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Topic | Speed Limits & Following Distance |
| License test | British Columbia Class 8 motorcycle learner knowledge test |
| Topic questions | 12 (13% of 90 total) |
| Review status | This topic page is still being reviewed against the official handbook. Until review is finished it is hidden from search engines. |
Official handbook
icbc.com ✓ Verified from official source
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Questions (12)
1. Which of the following happens when you have bad traction?
- You are not going the speed limit
- You don't start fast enough
- Your tires do not grip the road ✓
- You don't stop fast enough
Answer: C. Your tires do not grip the road
When you have bad traction, your tires do not grip the road. Bad traction means your tires are not holding the road well. The handbook explains traction as the grip your tires have on the surface, and it lists slippery or sandy surfaces and worn or improperly inflated tires as things that reduce traction. It also says abrupt accelerating, braking or turning can use up the traction you have. So the choice about tires not gripping the road matches the handbook's meaning. The others describe speed or starting and stopping performance, which the passage does not define as bad traction.
2. One way to respond to tailgaters is
- yelling at them.
- honking your horn.
- maintaining a dominant lane position. ✓
- None of the above
Answer: C. maintaining a dominant lane position.
Maintaining a dominant lane position is one way to respond to a tailgater. The handbook's tailgater strategies include keeping a dominant lane position, usually the left position, so the rider is visible to the driver behind. The passage says this can discourage the tailgater from coming closer, and changing position and then returning to the dominant spot may catch their attention and make them drop back. So the rider's response is about making themselves seen and holding a position rather than reacting at the driver.
3. In order to maintain a good space margin and prevent a possible collision, a rider must
- give vehicles behind enough space to slow down safely.
- have enough traction to slow down safely.
- have at least two seconds of space in front in good weather and good riding conditions.
- Any of the above ✓
Answer: D. Any of the above
The correct choice is any of these: leave enough room behind for vehicles to slow, have enough traction to slow safely, and keep at least two seconds of space in front in good weather and road conditions. The handbook treats a space margin as more than following distance. It says you need enough room ahead to slow down, and it sets a minimum of two seconds in good weather and good roads. It also warns that drivers behind may not be ready to slow for you, so you need to think about the space behind as well. When it lists speed-control questions, it asks whether brakes and tires are good enough and whether the bike will skid, which connects to having traction to slow safely. Together those points make every listed item part of the answer.
4. Unless a road sign tells you otherwise, the speed limit outside cities and towns is
- 70 km per hour.
- 50 km per hour.
- 100 km per hour.
- 80 km per hour. ✓
Answer: D. 80 km per hour.
Outside cities and towns, the default speed limit is 80 km per hour unless a sign says otherwise. The handbook's speed-limit list gives 50 km/h for roads within cities and towns and 80 km/h for roads outside them. Since the question asks for the default outside cities and towns, the listed 80 km/h figure applies. The same passage also explains that a posted limit is a maximum for ideal conditions, so a rider may need to go slower when roads are slippery or visibility is poor, but that does not change the default limit asked about here.
5. Which of the following does stopping distance include?
- Perception distance, reaction distance
- Perception distance, braking distance
- Perception distance, reaction distance, braking distance ✓
- None of the above
Answer: C. Perception distance, reaction distance, braking distance
Total stopping distance includes perception distance, reaction distance, and braking distance. The handbook defines total stopping distance as everything from the moment you notice a hazard until the motorcycle stops. It breaks that span into seeing and thinking (perception distance), then doing (reaction distance), and only after that do the brakes begin to work, adding braking distance. The same chapter also states plainly that stopping distance includes perception time, reaction time, and braking distance. So any answer that leaves out braking, or leaves out reaction, describes only part of the total.
6. When you double your speed, your braking distance
- increases by a few inches.
- increases by thirty times.
- increases by four times, ✓
- doesn't increase.
Answer: C. increases by four times,
When you double your speed, your braking distance increases by four times. The handbook ties stopping distance directly to speed: double your speed and the braking distance grows four times, and at triple the speed it grows nine times. The same passage adds that higher speeds greatly increase stopping distance and how severe a crash can be, which is why you should keep plenty of space and pick a speed that lets you stop safely. Since braking distance is part of total stopping distance, the jump from your original speed to twice that speed means four times the distance to pull up.
7. Which factors affect your braking distance?
- Quality of your brakes, your speed, your foot size, your tire traction
- Your speed, the weight of your motorcycle, your tire traction, road conditions, quality of your brakes ✓
- Your speed, your brand of bike, your tire traction, road conditions, quality of your brakes
- All of the above
Answer: B. Your speed, the weight of your motorcycle, your tire traction, road conditions, quality of your brakes
Braking distance is affected by your speed, the weight of your motorcycle, your tire traction, road conditions, and the quality of your brakes. The handbook breaks total stopping distance into perception, reaction, and braking distance, and then lists what braking distance itself depends on. It says speed matters most, and that the motorcycle's weight, how well the tires grip the road surface, and the condition of your brakes also change how far you travel before you stop. Adding road conditions fits the same idea, since the handbook treats the road surface as part of tire traction.
8. When following behind a large vehicle, you should have at least how many seconds of following distance?
- 1 second
- How many seconds you leave depends on the time of day
- 10 seconds
- 3 seconds ✓
Answer: D. 3 seconds
You should have at least 3 seconds of following distance when riding behind a large vehicle. The BC motorcycle handbook says to allow at least three seconds when you ride behind a large vehicle that could block your vision. It explains how to check that gap: pick an object ahead, start counting when the vehicle passes it, and if you reach the object as you say “three,” you have a three-second following distance. The handbook also gives two seconds as a general minimum in good conditions, but the instruction for a large vehicle raises the minimum to three seconds.
9. Unless a road sign tells you otherwise, the motorcycle speed limit inside cities and towns is
- 30 km per hour.
- 50 km per hour. ✓
- 70 km per hour.
- 60 km per hour.
Answer: B. 50 km per hour.
Unless a road sign says otherwise, the motorcycle speed limit inside cities and towns is 50 km per hour. The handbook lists the speed limits that apply when no sign gives a different number: 50 km/h within cities and towns and 80 km/h outside them. Since the question asks about riding inside cities and towns with no sign saying otherwise, the listed limit is 50 km/h. The same passage says the posted limit is the maximum for ideal conditions and that you should ride slower when conditions are not ideal, but that does not change the city or town limit itself.
10. You are being tailgated, what can you do?
- Change lanes
- Turn at the next intersection
- Pull off the road and let the tailgater pass
- Any of the above ✓
Answer: D. Any of the above
Any of the above works: you can change lanes, turn right at the next intersection, or pull off the road and let the tailgater pass. The rider handbook lists all three of these as ways to deal with someone following too closely: move into another lane, turn right at the next intersection, or pull off the roadway and let the tailgater go by. Because the handbook treats them as a set of choices rather than a single required move, the one that covers all of them is the correct pick. Which one you use depends on the traffic around you at the time. The handbook also adds that double-flashing your brake lights may make a tailgater notice the gap and drop back.
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Last checked: 2026-10-17 · Verified from official source
Updated: · Based on the official driver handbook