Speed Limits & Following Distance — Nebraska
Nebraska CDL practice test: 476 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: 15 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 | Nebraska CDL permit (CLP) knowledge tests |
| Topic questions | 15 (3% of 476 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 (15)
1. When driving a 50-foot truck at 50 mph, your minimum following distance should be:
- Four seconds.
- Five seconds.
- Six seconds. ✓
Answer: C. Six seconds.
At 50 mph in a 50-foot truck, allow at least six seconds of following distance. The handbook's following-distance rule starts with one second for every ten feet of vehicle length, so a 50-foot truck gets a five-second base. It then says to add one second when your speed is above 40 mph. At 50 mph, that extra second brings the minimum to six seconds. The same passage shows the pattern with a 40-foot truck: four seconds normally, or five seconds over 40 mph.
2. When traveling more slowly than 40 mph, maintain at least ____ of following distance per every 10 feet of your vehicle.
- One second ✓
- Two seconds
- Three seconds
- Four seconds
Answer: A. One second
3. Scan the road ____ ahead of your vehicle.
- Two to three seconds
- Five to six seconds
- 12 to 15 seconds ✓
Answer: C. 12 to 15 seconds
Scan the road 12 to 15 seconds ahead of your vehicle. The handbook says most good drivers look far enough ahead to cover the distance they will travel in 12 to 15 seconds. At lower speeds that is roughly one block, and at highway speeds it is about a quarter mile. Looking that far gives you room to stop or change lanes without sudden moves. It also says you should not ignore nearby traffic; good drivers move their attention between near and far. A two-to-three-second or five-to-six-second scan is shorter than the handbook's guideline.
4. When using road speed to know when to switch gears, you should:
- Learn what speeds each gear is good for and shift up when necessary. ✓
- Watch other vehicles and try to keep pace.
- Watch other trucks and shift when they shift.
- Use the speed limit as a guide.
Answer: A. Learn what speeds each gear is good for and shift up when necessary.
Learn what speeds each gear is good for, then use your speedometer to know when to shift up. The handbook lists two ways to know when to shift: engine speed or road speed. For the road speed method, it says to learn the speeds each gear is good for and use the speedometer to know when to shift up. That is a general skill tied to your own vehicle and gears, not something you pick up by copying traffic around you.
5. What is the average driver’s reaction time?
- 1/16 of a second
- 1/8 of a second
- 3/4 of a second ✓
Answer: C. 3/4 of a second
The average driver's reaction time is 3/4 of a second, which is the low end of the range the handbook gives. The handbook's discussion of stopping distance breaks the total into perception distance, reaction distance and braking distance. For reaction distance, it states that the average driver takes 3/4 second to 1 second to react before physically hitting the brakes, and notes that at 55 mph this accounts for 61 feet of travel. Since 3/4 of a second is the figure the handbook lists first for an average driver, it is the answer here. Reaction time is separate from perception time, which the handbook puts at 1 3/4 seconds for an alert driver.
6. Stopping distance can be affected by:
- Driving speed. ✓
- Temperature.
- Time of day.
Answer: A. Driving speed.
Driving speed affects stopping distance: as speed rises, the braking distance becomes much longer. The handbook's stopping-distance figure ties speed directly to braking distance. Going from 20 to 40 mph makes braking distance four times longer; going from 20 to 60 mph makes it nine times longer. It also says high speeds greatly increase stopping distances and that slowing down can reduce braking distance. The passage lists conditions such as traction, curves, visibility, traffic, and hills for speed adjustment, but it does not name temperature or time of day as stopping-distance factors.
7. If being tailgated, you should:
- Drive in the left lane.
- Drive in the right lane. ✓
- Speed up.
- Drive on the shoulder.
Answer: B. Drive in the right lane.
If you are being tailgated, drive in the right lane. The handbook says a heavy vehicle that cannot keep up with traffic should stay in the right lane if it can, and it notes tailgating often happens when you are traveling slowly. It also says to increase the space in front of you so you can avoid sudden speed or direction changes and so the tailgater can get around you. Staying right fits that advice. The handbook directly warns not to speed up, since being tailgated at a low speed is safer than at a high speed.
8. When you double your speed from 20 to 40 mph, your vehicle's braking distance will become ____ times longer.
- Two
- Three
- Four ✓
- 10
Answer: C. Four
When you double your speed from 20 to 40 mph, your braking distance becomes four times longer. The handbook's chart on speed and stopping distance says that doubling speed from 20 to 40 mph makes the impact four times greater, and adds that braking distance is also four times longer. The same chart shows the pattern keeps climbing as speed rises: tripling speed gives nine times the distance, and 80 mph gives sixteen times. So the jump is not a simple doubling; it grows much faster than the speed itself.
9. Stopping distance can be affected by:
- Speed. ✓
- Temperature.
- Time of day.
- Traffic.
Answer: A. Speed.
Stopping distance can be affected by speed; as speed increases, the distance needed to stop increases. The handbook's stopping-distance figure shows that braking distance grows sharply with speed: doubling speed makes braking distance four times longer, and tripling it makes it nine times longer. It also says high speeds increase stopping distances, while slowing down reduces braking distance. The total stopping-distance formula is perception distance plus reaction distance plus braking distance, and the air-brake section adds brake lag for those systems. Temperature and time of day do not appear as parts of that formula or as factors in the speed discussion.
10. To prevent a trailer from rolling over, you should:
- Speed up when nearing a corner.
- Make sudden steering moves.
- Take on-ramps faster than the posted speed limit.
- Drive slowly around corners. ✓
Answer: D. Drive slowly around corners.
To prevent a trailer from rolling over, drive slowly around corners. The handbook says rollovers happen when you turn too fast. For trailers, it advises you to steer gently and go slowly around corners, ramps, off ramps, and curves. A speed that is safe for a straight truck or a single trailer may be too fast for doubles or triples. Slowing down around a corner reduces the chance that turning speed will tip the trailer. The passage ties rollover prevention directly to gentle steering and lower speed in turns.
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Last checked: 2026-10-17 · Verified from official source
Updated: · Based on the official driver handbook