On freezing, wet days, which of the following roadways is most likely to hide spots of ice?
- Roadways near the tops of hills
- Roadways on bridges and overpasses ✓
- Roadways paved with asphalt
Answer: B. Roadways on bridges and overpasses
Roadways on bridges and overpasses are the most likely to hide spots of ice on freezing, wet days.
Why this is the answer
The handbook lists bridges and overpasses among the places where the road may be more slippery, and states that they tend to freeze before the rest of the road, so they can have icy spots. That is exactly the hazard the question asks about: a stretch of pavement that freezes early and can hide ice from you. The same passage also names shaded areas as places that freeze first, but bridges and overpasses are the situation offered that matches the handbook's warning.
Why the other answers are wrong
- A. Roadways near the tops of hills — The handbook points to shade from trees or buildings as a place that freezes first, not hilltops, and says nothing about higher ground holding ice.
- C. Roadways paved with asphalt — The handbook says asphalt-type pavement can be very slippery when rain first starts because of oil and dust, but it does not single out asphalt as the surface that freezes before other roads.
Remember it
Think of bridges as pavement with cold air above and below it, so they chill sooner than the road on solid ground.
Official handbook: California Driver Handbook (DL 600), Section 8: Safe Driving, p. 61