Speed Limits & Following Distance — Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania CDL practice test: 392 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: 12 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 | Pennsylvania CDL permit (CLP) knowledge tests |
| Topic questions | 12 (3% of 392 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 (12)
1. A driver should always:
- Stay in the right lane.
- Have an emergency plan. ✓
- Stay in the left lane.
- Drive faster than the posted speed limit.
Answer: B. Have an emergency plan.
A driver should always have an emergency plan. The handbook's defensive driving section tells you to keep scanning for hazards, but it also explains the reason you scan: hazards can turn into emergencies, and spotting them early gives you time to plan a way out. When you see a hazard, you should think about what could develop and decide what you would do, then be ready to act on that plan. The book calls this being a prepared, defensive driver who improves safety for yourself and everyone else on the road.
2. Stopping distance can be affected by:
- Speed. ✓
- Sunshine.
- Time of day.
- Traffic.
Answer: A. Speed.
Speed affects stopping distance: the faster you drive, the longer the braking distance becomes. The handbook's stopping-distance section says that when speed goes up, braking distance grows, and it gives the example that doubling speed makes braking distance four times longer. It also says slowing down reduces braking distance. The stopping-distance formula adds perception, reaction, and braking distance, so the speed-related braking part is a direct factor. The handbook does not present sunshine or time of day as factors in stopping distance.
3. A curve's posted design speed is:
- Safe for buses.
- Safe for all vehicles, including buses.
- The minimum speed at which the curve should be driven.
- Not always safe for buses. ✓
Answer: D. Not always safe for buses.
A curve's posted design speed is not always safe for buses. The handbook says every banked curve has a safe design speed, and in good weather the posted speed is safe for cars. It may be too high for many buses. With good traction a bus may roll over; with poor traction it may slide off the curve. That is why you reduce speed for curves and treat the posted number as a car benchmark, not a guarantee for your bus. Another section adds that high-center-of-gravity trucks can roll over at a curve's posted speed limit.
4. What is the number one cause of death and injury in work zones?
- Speeding drivers ✓
- Careless behavior by construction workers
- Drivers driving too slowly
- Equipment placed in the roadway
Answer: A. Speeding drivers
Speeding drivers are the number one cause of death and injury in work zones. The handbook states plainly that speeding traffic is the leading cause of injury and death in roadway work zones. That is why it tells you to watch the posted limits when you approach and drive through a work zone, to keep an eye on your speedometer so it does not creep up through long construction sections, and to slow further in bad weather or when a worker is close to the road.
5. 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.
6. 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.
7. What is the average driver’s reaction time?
- One-sixteenth of a second
- One-eighth of a second
- Between three-quarters of a second and one second ✓
- Two seconds
Answer: C. Between three-quarters of a second and one second
The average driver’s reaction time is between three-quarters of a second and one second. The handbook defines reaction distance as how far you keep moving before you hit the brakes after seeing a hazard. In ideal conditions, it says the average driver takes three-quarters of a second to one second to react. That is the range the question asks for. The same passage notes that at 55 mph this reaction time accounts for 61 feet traveled, which shows why the range matters when judging stopping distance.
8. Avoid needing to make sudden lane changes by:
- Using your horn to encourage other drivers to move out of your lane.
- Only driving slower than the posted speed limit.
- Watching the road ahead while driving. ✓
- Pulling off the road and waiting when there is high traffic.
Answer: C. Watching the road ahead while driving.
9. 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.
10. A driver should always:
- Stay in the right lane.
- Have an emergency plan. ✓
- Stay in the left lane.
- Drive above the speed limit.
Answer: B. Have an emergency plan.
A driver should always have an emergency plan. The handbook tells drivers to always have a plan. It says you should keep looking for hazards because they may turn into emergencies. When you see a hazard, think about what emergencies could develop and decide what you would do. Then be ready to act on that plan. Doing this makes you a prepared, defensive driver and improves safety for you and others on the road.
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Last checked: 2026-10-17 · Verified from official source
Updated: · Based on the official driver handbook