New Mexico CDL practice test: 411 free practice questions (Based on the official driver handbook). The official format is not yet verified; check the official site before your test. Highway & Freeway Driving: 5 questions. Updated
Entering and exiting freeways, lane changes, overtaking and HOV lane rules.
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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 verifiedState CDL manual (based on the AAMVA model manual) link not yet collected
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Questions (5)
1. During the driving test, when asked to make a lane change:
You should not be concerned with other motorists.
You should use your turn signal and change lanes when safe. ✓
You should make the lane change as quickly as possible, even if that means cutting off another driver.
Answer: B. You should use your turn signal and change lanes when safe.
You should use your turn signal and make the lane change only when it is safe to do so. The handbook's lane-change section says that during the driving test you first make the necessary traffic checks, then use proper signals, and then change lanes smoothly when it is safe. Section 2 adds that you must check your mirrors before changing lanes, after signaling, and again as you start, to be sure no one is alongside you or in your blind spot. Signaling and waiting for a safe gap are what the test is looking for.
Your turn signal should always be used when you make a lane change. The handbook says to use turn signals properly, activate them when required and at appropriate times, and cancel them after completing a turn or lane change. It also describes using the turn signal as part of moving into the lane you need. Nothing in these passages makes signaling a lane change depend on traffic being present or on the time of day, so the signal is treated as a normal part of the lane change itself.
4. If planning to change lanes, your mirrors should:
Not be checked.
Be checked as usual.
Be checked more often than usual. ✓
Answer: C. Be checked more often than usual.
When you plan to change lanes, check your mirrors more often than usual. The handbook treats lane changes as a special situation, and it says special situations call for more than your regular mirror checks. Before a lane change, you check to see whether someone is beside you or coming up to pass. After signaling, you check again for someone who may have slipped into your blind spot. You check right after starting the move and again after finishing it. That pattern of repeated looks is why the mirrors should get extra attention, not the same routine check.
When you change lanes, you should use your mirrors. The handbook treats lane changes as a special situation that calls for more than a quick glance. It says you need mirror checks to see whether someone is beside you or coming up to pass, and it lists checks before the move, after signaling, right after starting, and after finishing. It also describes using proper signals when changing lanes during the road test. Together, those points make mirror use part of a safe lane change, not something to skip.