To enter a gap in highway traffic:
- Watch only the vehicles behind the gap.
- Check behind you, then watch the vehicle ahead. ✓
- Speed up and let the other vehicles make way.
Answer: B. Check behind you, then watch the vehicle ahead.
Check behind you first, then keep watching the vehicle ahead as you enter the gap.
Why this is the answer
The handbook says to check your blind spots before you merge with traffic, and to look over your shoulders without turning the wheel. It also says that when entering traffic you must proceed with caution and yield to vehicles already in the lanes. That supports checking behind you first, then keeping watch on the vehicle ahead as you join the gap. The passages do not give a separate highway-gap procedure, so this is a careful reading rather than a direct statement.
Why the other answers are wrong
- A. Watch only the vehicles behind the gap. — Watching only the vehicles behind the gap ignores what is happening ahead and does not match the handbook's caution and yield rule when entering traffic.
- C. Speed up and let the other vehicles make way. — Speeding up and expecting other vehicles to make way conflicts with the rule to enter traffic with caution and yield to traffic already occupying the lanes.
Remember it
Check your shoulder before merging, then keep your eyes on the car ahead.
Official handbook: California Driver Handbook (DL 600), Section 8: Safe Driving, p. 58