Bad Weather & Night Driving — North Dakota
North Dakota CDL practice test: 419 free practice questions (Based on the official driver handbook). The official format is not yet verified; check the official site before your test. Bad Weather & Night Driving: 30 questions.
Rain, snow, ice, fog and night driving: visibility, traction and headlight use.
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 | Bad Weather & Night Driving |
| License test | North Dakota CDL permit (CLP) knowledge tests |
| Topic questions | 30 (7% of 419 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 (30)
1. If a trailer begins to skid, the driver should:
- Lock the brakes.
- Release the brakes. ✓
- Steer in the opposite direction.
- Accelerate.
Answer: B. Release the brakes.
Release the brakes so the trailer wheels can regain traction. The handbook says that when a trailer starts to skid, you should release the brakes to get traction back. It explains that the trailer wheel brakes caused the skid, so using the trailer hand brake to try to straighten the rig is the wrong move. Once the trailer wheels grip the road again, the trailer will follow the tractor and straighten out.
2. What is a concern immediately after it begins raining?
- The water will mix with grease and oil on the road, making the roadway slippery. ✓
- A driver may forget where the windshield wiper lever is located.
- It may stop raining.
- People will be using their windshield wipers needlessly.
Answer: A. The water will mix with grease and oil on the road, making the roadway slippery.
Right after rain begins, the water mixes with oil left on the road by vehicles, which makes the road very slippery. The handbook lists "Just After Rain Begins" as one of the signs of a slippery road: the first rain mixes with oil that vehicles have dripped onto the pavement, and that mixture makes the surface very slippery. It also notes that if the rain keeps falling, it washes the oil away, so the worst slipperiness is at the start. Since traction is just friction between tires and road, losing it means longer stopping and harder turning, so you should slow down and expect trouble as the first rain arrives.
3. A skid caused by acceleration can likely be solved by:
- Removing your foot from the accelerator. ✓
- Braking.
- Swerving to the right.
- Swerving to the left.
Answer: A. Removing your foot from the accelerator.
To recover from a skid caused by acceleration, remove your foot from the accelerator. The handbook says acceleration-caused skids usually happen on ice or snow, and that taking your foot off the accelerator can easily stop them. It explains that a drive-wheel skid is when the rear wheels lose traction from too much braking or acceleration. For the acceleration type, easing off the power lets the wheels roll freely and regain traction; on very slippery surfaces the handbook adds pushing in the clutch so the engine does not keep the wheels from rolling.
4. Why are roads particularly slippery right after it begins to rain?
- Water mixes with grease and oil on the road. ✓
- Roads are naturally slippery.
- Gravel gets washed to the middle of the lane.
- Some tires are not designed for rain.
Answer: A. Water mixes with grease and oil on the road.
Roads are especially slippery right after it starts to rain because water mixes with grease and oil left on the road by vehicles. The handbook's slippery-surface section describes the period just after rain begins. It says rainwater combines with oil left by vehicles and that this makes the road very slippery; if rain keeps falling, the oil is washed away. That matches the choice about water mixing with grease and oil. The same section says wet roads can double stopping distance and tells you to slow down on wet surfaces.
5. When encountering fog, you will be safest if you:
- Stay in the left lane.
- Don’t drive in the fog. ✓
- Use your low beam lights.
- Follow the vehicle ahead of you closely.
Answer: B. Don’t drive in the fog.
The safest choice is not to drive in the fog; pull off the road until visibility improves. The handbook's fog section says fog on highways can be extremely dangerous and visibility can drop fast. Its best advice for driving in fog is simply don't. It suggests pulling off into a rest area or truck stop until you can see better. The same section does tell you to use low-beam headlights and fog lights if you must drive, but that guidance comes after the main instruction to avoid driving in fog. So the safest answer is to stay out of the fog when you can.
6. If you see lights ahead while driving in fog:
- You can assume the lights are on the road.
- It may be a reflection.
- It may be an optical illusion.
- The lights may not indicate where the road is as the vehicle may have pulled off the roadway. ✓
Answer: D. The lights may not indicate where the road is as the vehicle may have pulled off the roadway.
The lights ahead may not show where the road goes, because the vehicle they belong to may have pulled off the roadway. The fog section tells you to watch for vehicles on the side of the roadway. It warns that taillights or headlights you see ahead are not a reliable sign of where the road runs, since the vehicle may not be on the road at all. Instead of steering toward those lights, the handbook says to use roadside highway reflectors as your guide for how the road curves ahead. That makes the lights unreliable as a path marker.
7. Roads are slippery when it first begins to rain because:
- Water is slippery.
- The fresh rain mixes with oil on the roadway. ✓
- The water has nowhere to go.
- Concrete can be slippery.
Answer: B. The fresh rain mixes with oil on the roadway.
Roads are slippery when it first begins to rain because the fresh rain mixes with oil left on the roadway by vehicles. The handbook says that right after rain starts, the water mixes with oil that vehicles have left on the road, and that combination makes the pavement very slippery. It also notes that if the rain continues, it washes the oil away. So the first rain is the risky period, not simply because water or concrete is slippery in general. That is why the answer points to fresh rain mixing with oil.
8. Slippery roadways usually:
- Make it more difficult to stop a vehicle. ✓
- Make it easier to stop a vehicle.
- Make it easier to drive a vehicle.
- Can be avoided by driving at night.
Answer: A. Make it more difficult to stop a vehicle.
Slippery roadways make it more difficult to stop a vehicle. The handbook says traction is the friction between tires and the road, and slippery surfaces reduce it. On a slippery road, it takes longer to stop and it is harder to turn without skidding. Wet roads can double stopping distance, so you need to slow down to stop within the same distance as on dry pavement. That is why the correct choice is the one about stopping becoming harder. The passage also ties this to lower speeds on wet, snowy, or icy surfaces.
9. ____ is a thin layer of ice that forms on road surfaces.
- White ice
- Black ice ✓
- Green ice
- Blue ice
Answer: B. Black ice
Black ice is the thin layer of ice that forms on road surfaces. The handbook describes black ice as a thin, clear layer that lets you see the road underneath it, which makes the road look wet. It also says that when the temperature is below freezing and the road looks wet, you should watch for black ice. That matches the definition in the question. The other choices are not used in the handbook for this road condition.
10. What should a driver do if their vehicle hydroplanes?
- Accelerate.
- Use the brakes.
- Release the accelerator and push in the clutch. ✓
- Take the vehicle out of gear.
Answer: C. Release the accelerator and push in the clutch.
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Last checked: 2026-10-17 · Verified from official source
Updated: · Based on the official driver handbook