A solid white line down the center of a two-lane road indicates:
- Lanes are moving in opposite directions and drivers are not permitted to pass.
- Lanes are moving in opposite directions and drivers are permitted to pass when it is safe to do so.
- Lanes are moving in the same direction and drivers are not permitted to pass. ✓
- Lanes are moving in the same direction and drivers are permitted to pass when it is safe to do so.
Answer: C. Lanes are moving in the same direction and drivers are not permitted to pass.
A solid white line down the center of a two-lane road means the lanes are moving in the same direction and drivers are not permitted to pass.
Why this is the answer
The handbook groups white lane lines as separators between lanes of traffic going the same way, and yellow lines as the ones that separate traffic going opposite ways. A single solid white line is different from a broken one: you can drive on either side of it in the same direction, but you should not cross it unless you must to avoid a hazard, and it is also used to discourage lane changes near intersections. Since passing or changing lanes means crossing the line, the solid white line rules it out.
Why the other answers are wrong
- A. Lanes are moving in opposite directions and drivers are not permitted to pass. — Lanes going in opposite directions are separated by yellow lines, not white ones, so the direction half of this choice is wrong even though it correctly says passing is not allowed.
- B. Lanes are moving in opposite directions and drivers are permitted to pass when it is safe to do so. — White lines mark same-direction traffic rather than opposing traffic, and a solid white line is not one you may cross to pass whenever you feel it is safe.
- D. Lanes are moving in the same direction and drivers are permitted to pass when it is safe to do so. — This gets the same-direction part right but is wrong about passing, because the handbook says to stay off a solid white line unless you must cross it to avoid a hazard, so routine passing is out.
Remember it
Think of white paint as one-way paint: a break in the line means you may cross when safe, a solid stretch means stay in your lane.