Sharing the Road — Washington
Washington CDL practice test: 386 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: 25 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 | Washington CDL permit (CLP) knowledge tests |
| Topic questions | 25 (6% of 386 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
Advertisement
Questions (25)
1. Hanging meat in a refrigerated truck:
- Is a good way for inexperienced drivers to gain experience.
- Requires a skilled driver. ✓
- Is illegal in most states.
Answer: B. Requires a skilled driver.
Hanging meat in a refrigerated truck requires a skilled driver. The handbook describes hanging meat as a very unstable load with a high center of gravity. It warns that sharp curves, such as on ramps and off ramps, need particular caution and says to go slowly. Because the load is unstable and raises the center of gravity, handling it safely calls for a skilled driver. The passage does not present it as a beginner training task or say it is illegal; it focuses on the handling difficulty.
2. What should you do if your vehicle gets stuck on railroad tracks?
- Stay in the vehicle.
- Get out of the vehicle and call for assistance. ✓
- Continue trying to get your vehicle off the tracks until you are successful.
Answer: B. Get out of the vehicle and call for assistance.
If your vehicle gets stuck on the tracks, get out of the vehicle and call for assistance. The handbook says that if you get stuck on the tracks for any reason, you should get out of the vehicle and away from the tracks. Then you check the signposts or signal housing at the crossing for emergency notification information and call 911 or another emergency number, giving the location with all identifiable landmarks, especially the DOT number if it is posted. So the right move is to leave the vehicle and phone for help, not to sit inside it or keep working the controls.
3. When approaching a school bus stop, the driver should:
- Honk the horn.
- Drive slowly. ✓
- Talk to students on the bus.
Answer: B. Drive slowly.
When you approach a school bus stop, drive slowly. The handbook says to use extreme caution when coming up to a school bus stop and to approach at a slow rate of speed. It also tells you to watch for pedestrians, traffic, and other objects before, during, and after you stop, and to keep checking all mirrors. Driving slowly fits that instruction because it gives you time to see and respond to what is around the bus.
4. If your vehicle gets stuck on railroad tracks, you should:
- Sit in the cab and call for help.
- Exit the cab and walk away from the tracks. ✓
- Motion for another driver to push your vehicle.
Answer: B. Exit the cab and walk away from the tracks.
Leave the cab and move away from the tracks. The handbook says that if you get stuck on the tracks for any reason, you should get out of the vehicle and away from the tracks. Once clear, check the signposts or signal housing at the crossing for emergency notification information, then call 911 or another emergency number. When you call, give the crossing location using landmarks, especially the DOT number if it is posted. The first action is to get yourself off the tracks, not to stay with the vehicle.
5. When boarding a school bus, students should:
- Be in a single-file line. ✓
- Be in pairs.
- Not use the handrail.
Answer: A. Be in a single-file line.
Students should board the school bus in a single-file line. The school bus section of the handbook gives loading instructions to the driver: students should get on the bus slowly, in single file, and use the handrail. That means they form one line as they board, one behind another, and they should hold the handrail. The passage connects single-file boarding with using the handrail, so the correct choice is the one describing a single-file line.
6. School buses:
- Are never equipped with ABS.
- Are only equipped with ABS if students who are younger than 10 years of age will be on the bus.
- May be equipped with ABS. ✓
Answer: C. May be equipped with ABS.
School buses may be equipped with ABS. The handbook says ABS is required on air-braked buses made from March 1, 1998 onward, and on hydraulically braked buses with a gross vehicle weight rating of 10,000 lbs or more made from March 1, 1999 onward. It also says many older commercial vehicles were voluntarily equipped with ABS. So a school bus can have ABS, and some must have it, depending on the build date and brake type. Nothing in the passages ties ABS equipment to the ages of the students riding the bus.
7. If there is a fire on a school bus, the students:
- Must be evacuated. ✓
- Should stay on the bus but be moved to a part of the bus unaffected by the fire.
- Should stay in their seats.
Answer: A. Must be evacuated.
If there is a fire on a school bus, the students must be evacuated. The handbook sets a general rule that student safety and control are best kept by leaving students on the bus during an emergency, but only as long as staying aboard does not put them at unnecessary risk. It then lists the conditions a driver should weigh when deciding whether to evacuate, and the first one is whether there is a fire or danger of fire, or a smell of raw or leaking fuel. A fire is exactly the kind of risk that makes staying on the bus unsafe, so the students need to be gotten off.
8. Doors should be closed while a school bus is being driven, except when:
- Crossing railroad tracks. ✓
- Needing to cool off the inside of the vehicle.
- There is no vehicle next to the bus.
Answer: A. Crossing railroad tracks.
The doors may be open when the school bus is crossing railroad tracks. The handbook's on-road driving section says a bus driver may be required to open the window and door before going over tracks. That is the exception given for having the door open while the bus is moving. The railroad-crossing passages focus on stopping, sight distance, and clearing the tracks; none of them say doors must stay shut at crossings. So the bank answer fits the handbook: crossing tracks is when door use can be required.
9. Backing a school bus is:
- Strongly encouraged.
- Strongly discouraged. ✓
- Only to be done in the morning.
Answer: B. Strongly discouraged.
Backing a school bus is strongly discouraged; you should back only when there is no other safe way to move the bus. The handbook states that backing a school bus is strongly discouraged. It says you should back only when you have no other safe way to move the vehicle, and you should never back when students are outside the bus. Backing is dangerous and raises the risk of a collision. If you must back, the handbook lists precautions such as posting a lookout, signaling for quiet on the bus, and constantly checking mirrors and rear windows. That supports the bank answer that backing is strongly discouraged rather than encouraged.
10. If you are stopped at a railroad crossing while operating a school bus, you should:
- Prepare to proceed as soon as a train passes.
- Ignore signs and signals.
- Open the door to listen for approaching trains. ✓
Answer: C. Open the door to listen for approaching trains.
You should open the door to listen for an approaching train. The school bus section tells you to quiet the bus, turn off radios and noisy equipment, open the service door and driver's window, and then look and listen for a train. The passenger section adds that you may open the forward door when it helps you see or hear an approaching train. Opening the door is therefore a listening aid at the crossing, not a signal to move. You still check both directions along the track before you proceed.
Advertisement
Source
Last checked: 2026-10-17 · Verified from official source
Updated: · Based on the official driver handbook