A double solid yellow 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: A. Lanes are moving in opposite directions and drivers are not permitted to pass.
A double solid yellow line means the lanes carry traffic moving in opposite directions, and drivers are not permitted to pass.
Why this is the answer
The manual says yellow lines separate traffic moving in opposite directions. Its pavement-marking list says double solid lines mean you cannot pass or change lanes. Put together, a double solid yellow center line tells you the lanes face each other and that crossing the line to pass is not allowed. The passing chapter matches this by saying you cannot pass on the left when your lane has a solid yellow center line.
Why the other answers are wrong
- B. Lanes are moving in opposite directions and drivers are permitted to pass when it is safe to do so. — A double solid yellow line does not permit passing; the manual says double solid lines mean you cannot pass or change lanes.
- C. Lanes are moving in the same direction and drivers are not permitted to pass. — Yellow lines separate traffic moving in opposite directions, not traffic moving in the same direction.
- D. Lanes are moving in the same direction and drivers are permitted to pass when it is safe to do so. — This is wrong both ways: yellow lines mean opposite-direction traffic, and double solid lines mean you cannot pass.
Remember it
Yellow means facing traffic; two solid yellows mean no crossing to pass.