Sharing the Road — Texas
Texas permit practice test: 580 free practice questions (Based on the official driver handbook). The official format is not yet verified; check the official site before your test. Sharing the Road: 65 questions.
Pedestrians, cyclists, school buses, emergency vehicles and heavy trucks.
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 | Sharing the Road |
| License test | Texas Car learner's permit test |
| Topic questions | 65 (11% of 580 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
Texas Driver Handbook (dps.texas.gov, DL-7) ✓ Verified from official source
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Questions (65)
1. A bicyclist who doesn’t obey traffic laws:
- Is in the right because bicyclists don’t have to obey traffic laws.
- Can be ticketed. ✓
- Will always receive a warning from law enforcement.
- Will have their bicycle impounded.
Answer: B. Can be ticketed.
A bicyclist who does not obey traffic laws can be ticketed. The Texas handbook treats a bicycle as a vehicle. It says anyone riding a bicycle has the same rights and responsibilities as a person driving a vehicle, unless a rule cannot apply to a bicycle by its nature. It also says a bicyclist is subject to the same penalties for violating a traffic law as a motor vehicle operator, and that traffic convictions go on the person’s driver record whether the offense happened on a bicycle or in a motor vehicle. That is why a bicyclist who ignores traffic laws can be ticketed.
2. You may drive around the gates at a railroad crossing:
- When the train has passed.
- Under no circumstances. ✓
- When the lights have stopped flashing.
- When other drivers drive around the gates.
Answer: B. Under no circumstances.
You may not drive around the gates at a railroad crossing under any circumstances. The Texas handbook tells drivers to obey all crossing gates and says plainly never to drive around crossing gate arms. It also describes the correct routine when gates are down: stop, stay stopped, and wait until the train passes and the gates are raised before crossing. That leaves no situation in which steering around a lowered arm is permitted, even if the train has gone by, the lights have stopped, or someone else does it.
3. What is the appropriate action to take when approaching a railroad crossing that does not have signals to direct traffic?
- Always bring the car to a complete stop.
- Slow down and be prepared to stop. ✓
- All railroad crossings have signals so you will never encounter this situation.
- Increase your speed to get across the tracks quickly.
Answer: B. Slow down and be prepared to stop.
Slow down and be prepared to stop as you approach a railroad crossing with no signals. The Texas handbook describes the round railroad crossing sign: it tells you that you are within a few hundred feet of the tracks, so you should slow down and be ready to stop. If you see a train coming, you stop and you never try to beat it. The handbook lists the specific situations that call for a full stop between 15 and 50 feet of the nearest rail, such as a warning signal, a lowered gate, a flag person, or a train that is visible and close. When none of those exist, slowing and staying ready to stop is the right move.
4. If you are driving on a one-way street and an emergency vehicle using its flashing lights approaches your vehicle, you must:
- Drive with your flashers turned on.
- Drive toward the nearest roadside and stop. ✓
- Speed up and take the nearest exit.
- Slow down until the vehicle passes you.
Answer: B. Drive toward the nearest roadside and stop.
You must drive toward the nearest roadside and stop. The Texas handbook says you have to yield to police cars, fire trucks, ambulances, and other emergency vehicles that are sounding a siren, bell, or flashing red light. When traffic allows, pull to the right edge of the road and stop. If you cannot pull to the right, slow down and leave a clear path. The question's one-way street detail is not covered in this passage, but the handbook's direction to get out of the emergency vehicle's way and stop supports the roadside-and-stop choice.
5. What should you do when an emergency vehicle is approaching while displaying flashing red or blue lights?
- See if you can reach your destination before the emergency vehicle catches up to you.
- Continue driving but try to stay out of its way.
- Pull over to the side of the road and come to a complete stop. ✓
- Stop in the middle of an intersection.
Answer: C. Pull over to the side of the road and come to a complete stop.
Pull over to the side of the road and come to a complete stop, provided traffic allows. The handbook says you must yield to police cars, fire trucks, ambulances, and other emergency vehicles that are sounding a siren, bell, or flashing red light. When traffic allows, the specific move is to pull to the right edge of the road and stop. If you cannot pull to the right, the handbook says to slow down and leave a clear path. That makes pulling over and stopping the expected response, not simply continuing on your route.
6. Shared lanes may be used by:
- Bicyclists. ✓
- Truck drivers.
- Motorcyclists.
- Passenger vehicle operators.
Answer: A. Bicyclists.
Shared lanes may be used by bicyclists. The handbook describes shared lane markings as a tool that helps bicyclists hold a safe side-to-side position in a lane, especially beside parked cars or in lanes too narrow for a car and a bicycle side by side. The same passage says the markings alert other road users to where bicyclists are likely to ride and encourage safe passing. That focus on bicycle positioning is why the bank answer points to bicyclists rather than the other road-user groups listed.
7. After stopping for a school bus that is unloading children:
- Do not proceed until the children wave to you.
- Watch for children walking along the side of the road. ✓
- Accelerate quickly.
- Turn on your emergency flashers.
Answer: B. Watch for children walking along the side of the road.
After the bus lets children off, watch for children walking along the side of the road before you move again. The handbook's school-zone guidance tells you to slow down, watch for children, and be ready to stop suddenly when you are near a school. Children who just stepped off a bus can be along the edge of the road, so your job after stopping is to keep watching for them rather than moving off right away. The passages do not spell out a school bus unloading rule, but the school-area warning about watching for children and being ready to stop is the closest support for this answer.
8. You are approaching a railroad crossing and you do not see or hear a train. You must stop:
- If a stop sign is posted.
- If a crossing gate is lowered.
- If the crossing lights are flashing.
- All of the above. ✓
Answer: D. All of the above.
You must stop for all of the above: a posted stop sign, a lowered crossing gate, or flashing crossing lights. Texas rules list several separate reasons to stop at a crossing, so the safe choice is all of them. The handbook says to stop when a crossing gate is lowered and to remain stopped until the train passes and the gate rises. It also says to stop when red lights are flashing. A posted stop sign is an official traffic-control device, and the handbook says you must stop when an official traffic-control device requires it. Because each warning works on its own, you do not wait to see or hear a train before stopping.
9. When you hear the siren or see the flashing lights of an approaching emergency vehicle, you must:
- Slow down until it passes you.
- Drive to the right side of the road and stop. ✓
- Motion for the emergency vehicle to pass you.
- Merge into the right lane and continue driving.
Answer: B. Drive to the right side of the road and stop.
You must drive to the right side of the road and stop when an emergency vehicle approaches with its siren or flashing lights. The Texas handbook says you must yield to police cars, fire trucks, ambulances, and other emergency vehicles that are sounding a siren or using a flashing red light. If traffic allows, you pull to the right edge of the road and stop. If you cannot pull over to the right, the handbook says to slow down and leave a clear path. So the normal response is to get to the right side and stop, not just slow down or keep driving.
10. Car drivers should know that large trucks:
- Have large blind spots. ✓
- Can stop more quickly than passenger vehicles.
- Do not need more room to maneuver than passenger vehicles.
- All of the above.
Answer: A. Have large blind spots.
Large trucks have large blind spots. The handbook passage about sharing the road with tractor-trailers tells you to stay out of a truck's blind spot behind it. It explains that the blind spot is the area behind the truck that the driver cannot see in the rearview mirrors. The passage also advises positioning your vehicle so the truck driver can see you in the side mirror. This directly supports the statement that large trucks have large blind spots. The same passage notes that tractor-trailers take longer to stop than a car, which shows why the other choices are wrong.
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Last checked: 2026-10-17 · Verified from official source
Updated: · Based on the official driver handbook