Speed Limits & Following Distance — Massachusetts
Massachusetts CDL practice test: 429 free practice questions (Based on the official driver handbook). The official format is not yet verified; check the official site before your test. Speed Limits & Following Distance: 10 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 | Massachusetts CDL permit (CLP) knowledge tests |
| Topic questions | 10 (2% of 429 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
Not yet verified
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Questions (10)
1. If another driver is tailgating you, you should:
- Move into the left lane.
- Speed up.
- Increase the space in front of your vehicle. ✓
- Flash your lights.
Answer: C. Increase the space in front of your vehicle.
Increase the space in front of your vehicle. The handbook's advice for being tailgated is to open up room ahead of you. That larger following distance means you will not have to brake or steer suddenly, and it gives the tailgater an easier chance to get around you. The same section says not to speed up and to avoid tricks such as flashing lights, so the safe response is to manage the space in front rather than react to the driver behind.
2. When traveling down a downgrade, the speed of a vehicle will likely:
- Decrease.
- Not change.
- Increase. ✓
- Match the speed of traffic.
Answer: C. Increase.
3. A driver should always:
- Stay in one lane.
- Have an emergency plan. ✓
- Stay in the left lane.
- Travel faster than the speed limit.
Answer: B. Have an emergency plan.
A driver should always have an emergency plan. The handbook says you should always be looking for hazards because they may turn into emergencies. It tells you to plan a way out, think about what could develop, and be ready to act on that plan. That is what having an emergency plan means: you have already decided what you would do before trouble develops. The passage presents this as part of being a prepared, defensive driver, so it fits the general rule better than the other choices.
4. A sign indicating a maximum safe speed:
- Is suggesting a driving speed, but vehicles may travel faster than the posted speed.
- Is suggesting a speed limit to be followed only by vehicles weighing more than 26,000 pounds.
- Should be followed and no vehicle should travel faster than the posted speed. ✓
- Is only applicable to automobiles.
Answer: C. Should be followed and no vehicle should travel faster than the posted speed.
A sign indicating a maximum safe speed should be followed, and no vehicle should travel faster than the posted speed. The handbook says that when there is a sign indicating "Maximum Safe Speed," you should never exceed the speed shown. It treats that sign as a speed you must stay at or below, not as a casual suggestion. So the safe and proper action is to follow the posted maximum safe speed and not go faster than it.
5. Low underneath clearance can cause difficulties when driving:
- Over railroad crossings. ✓
- On gravel roads.
- Around corners.
- At the posted speed limit.
Answer: A. Over railroad crossings.
Low underneath clearance can cause difficulties when driving over railroad crossings. The handbook warns that railroad tracks can cause problems when you are pulling a trailer with little clearance underneath. It tells you not to chance getting hung up halfway across, which means the trailer frame or low parts could catch on the raised track structure. That is why the passage points to crossings, not to ordinary road surfaces or turns, as the place where low clearance becomes a real hazard.
6. If you are being tailgated, you should:
- Drive on the shoulder.
- Pull off the roadway.
- Drive faster.
- Allow the vehicle to pass. ✓
Answer: D. Allow the vehicle to pass.
If you are being tailgated, allow the vehicle to pass by holding a steady, low speed and leaving extra room in front of you so the tailgater can get around. The handbook lists specific responses for a tailgater: avoid quick changes by signaling early and slowing gradually, open up your following distance, and do not speed up. It notes that extra room ahead both reduces your need for sudden moves and makes it easier for the tailgater to get past you. So the goal is not to escape the tailgater but to make passing them easy and predictable. The handbook also warns against tricks like flashing brake lights or turning on taillights.
7. What is a bobtail?
- A tractor without a semi-trailer ✓
- A tractor with two semi-trailers
- A tractor that goes faster than the speed limit
- A tractor that goes slower than the speed limit
Answer: A. A tractor without a semi-trailer
A bobtail is a tractor without a semi-trailer. The handbook uses the term for tractors running without semitrailers. It adds that these bobtails can be hard to stop smoothly and may need more distance to stop than a fully loaded tractor-semitrailer. That description matches a tractor without a semi-trailer; nothing in the passage connects bobtail to two trailers or to driving faster or slower than the speed limit.
8. The Individual Vehicle Distance Record (IVDR) must include all of the following, except:
- The date of trip.
- The route of travel.
- The total distance traveled.
- The number of stops. ✓
Answer: D. The number of stops.
9. How many seconds of following distance per every 10 feet of vehicle should you maintain when traveling more slowly than 40 mph?
- One second ✓
- Two seconds
- Three seconds
- Four seconds
Answer: A. One second
When you are traveling slower than 40 mph, keep one second of following distance for every 10 feet of vehicle length. The handbook states the space-ahead rule directly: at least one second for each 10 feet of vehicle length at speeds below 40 mph, and at higher speeds you add one more second. So a 40-foot vehicle needs 4 seconds under 40 mph, and a 60-foot rig needs 6 seconds, matching the examples given. The passages also explain the reason for the rule: space ahead is what lets you stop if traffic in front of you slows suddenly, and following too closely is the most common cause of rear-end crashes for large vehicles.
10. Trailers with low underneath clearance may be difficult to drive:
- On interstate highways.
- Over railroad crossings. ✓
- On dirt roads.
- At the posted speed limit.
Answer: B. Over railroad crossings.
Trailers with low underneath clearance can be hard to drive over railroad crossings, where the trailer may get hung up on the tracks. The handbook points to railroad crossings as a special problem for trailers that sit low to the ground. It warns that you should not gamble on getting hung up halfway across the tracks. The clearance between the trailer's underside and the road surface is what matters at the raised rails and crossing surface, and that same warning appears both in the driving safely section and in the combination vehicles section, so the risk is tied to crossings rather than to open highway driving.
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Last checked: 2026-10-17 · Verified from official source
Updated: · Based on the official driver handbook