Iowa DOT Permit Practice Test 52
- Questions25
- Correct to pass20
- Passing score80%
- Minimum age14 years
-
1. This sign leads to a crossing that has no gates and no flashing lights. What does that mean for the driver?
Show answer
Answer D: Nothing will warn of an approaching train, so the driver must check the tracks personally
At a passive crossing there is no active device to announce a train, so the whole judgment rests on the driver, who must approach slowly enough to stop after looking along the track.
-
2. A warning sign showing two children on a see-saw is posted beside a residential street. What does it mean?
Show answer
Answer D: A play area lies beside the road and children may run out
The playground sign warns that children are present next to the roadway and may enter it without looking, so drivers should cover the brake and slow down.
-
3. A traffic signal is displaying a flashing red light. How must you treat it?
Show answer
Answer D: Stop completely, then proceed when the way is clear
A flashing red carries the same meaning as a stop sign: come to a full stop, then go only when it is safe.
-
4. A wide solid white line separates the through lanes from an exit lane. What does it tell drivers?
Show answer
Answer B: The choice of lane should already have been made
A channelizing line marks where the paths separate and crossing it is discouraged or prohibited, so the lane change has to happen upstream.
-
5. The street you are turning right onto has a bike lane along its right edge. Where should your vehicle end up?
Show answer
Answer B: In the first traffic lane to the left of the bike lane
A bike lane is not a travel lane for motor vehicles, so the nearest lane you may finish a right turn in is the first general traffic lane beside it.
-
6. You are passing a crash on the other side of a divided highway. What should you do?
Show answer
Answer D: Keep your eyes on your own lane and the traffic around you
Staring at a crash scene, often called rubbernecking, causes sudden slowing and secondary collisions. Your attention belongs on the traffic in front of you.
-
7. What is the safest way to deal with the situation this sign announces?
Show answer
Answer B: Match the speed of the other traffic stream and open a gap so vehicles can blend without hard braking
Blending works when speeds are matched and gaps are opened, so nobody has to brake hard or swerve where the two streams come together.
-
8. Your vehicle is burning at the roadside. How far away should everyone keep?
Show answer
Answer D: At least a hundred feet away from the vehicle and upwind, out of the drifting smoke
Burning vehicles give off toxic smoke and parts such as tires and struts can burst, so keep a long distance and stay upwind.
-
9. Your steering suddenly feels light and unresponsive as you drive through standing water. What should you do first?
Show answer
Answer A: Ease off the accelerator and keep the steering wheel pointed straight
Those symptoms mean the tires are riding on a film of water, and gently lifting off the accelerator lets them settle back onto the pavement. Hard braking or sudden steering while hydroplaning can start a skid.
-
10. An emergency vehicle is stopped on the shoulder ahead with its lights flashing. What does the move over principle require?
Show answer
Answer D: Change lanes away from it, or slow down if you cannot
Move over laws ask you to give responders an empty lane, and where traffic or a two-lane road makes that impossible, you slow down instead.
-
11. When is it appropriate to use cruise control?
Show answer
Answer B: On a dry, open highway with light traffic
Cruise control suits steady conditions where you rarely need to change speed. It is a poor choice in traffic, on curves, on slippery roads or when drowsy, because it removes you from the speed decision.
-
12. On an unlit road, about how far ahead do high beams normally let you see?
Show answer
Answer D: About 350 to 500 feet ahead of the vehicle
High beams light roughly 350 to 500 feet of road and low beams far less, which is why night speeds have to be chosen around the beam, not the limit.
-
13. Where are signs of this kind placed at an intersection?
Show answer
Answer C: At the near right and far left corners, facing drivers on the intersecting street
They are installed at the corners of the intersecting street so that a driver about to turn in sees the restriction before committing to the turn.
-
14. You realize your tires are running on ice. Which set of inputs is safest?
Show answer
Answer C: Gentle steering, no sudden braking, and no sudden acceleration
Whatever grip is left is used up at once by any sudden input, so every movement of wheel, brake and accelerator must be slow and small.
-
15. A driver hunting for an on-ramp meets this sign at the mouth of the pavement ahead. What is the correct action?
Show answer
Answer C: Keep out of that roadway and look for the proper approach elsewhere
The restriction is absolute and does not depend on how much traffic is present, so the driver has to reach the highway by an approach built for entering vehicles.
-
16. You are in a marked passing zone but a steady stream of oncoming traffic is coming toward you. What does the broken center line allow?
Show answer
Answer C: A pass only when the road is clear, so you have to stay behind
A passing zone marks where the sight distance is adequate, but it never gives permission to enter a lane that another vehicle is occupying.
-
17. What makes up the total distance needed to bring a vehicle to a stop?
Show answer
Answer A: The distance covered while you perceive the hazard, the distance covered while you react, and the braking distance
Total stopping distance combines the ground covered while you notice the hazard, the ground covered while you move your foot to the brake, and the ground covered while the brakes slow the vehicle.
-
18. A sign reads MINIMUM SPEED 40. What does it require of a driver?
Show answer
Answer C: Not to drive below that speed when conditions allow
A minimum speed limit keeps unnecessarily slow vehicles from obstructing traffic, but it never overrides the duty to slow down for weather or congestion.
-
19. The green left-turn arrow ends and a steady red ball comes on for your lane, at an intersection where no turn on red is allowed. What must you do?
Show answer
Answer D: Stop and wait, because no turn is allowed while the red ball is lit
Once a red indication faces your lane and no turn on red is permitted there, the turn is over; only a vehicle already inside the intersection completes its movement.
-
20. Traffic is backed up on the far side of a railroad crossing. What should you do before driving onto the tracks?
Show answer
Answer D: Wait behind the tracks until there is room to clear them completely
Never enter a crossing until you are certain you can drive completely across without stopping, because a vehicle trapped on the tracks cannot get out of a train's way.
-
21. Two vehicles meet on a steep, narrow mountain road with no room to pass. Which driver should back up?
Show answer
Answer C: The driver heading downhill, who has more control while reversing
On a narrow mountain road the vehicle facing downhill yields, because backing uphill gives better control than reversing down a grade.
-
22. On a busy multilane highway, where is the best place to travel?
Show answer
Answer B: In a gap in the traffic, with space open on both sides
Travelling in a gap keeps escape routes open on both sides, while riding alongside other vehicles removes the room you would need to swerve.
-
23. At 45 mph you look at a navigation screen for four seconds. Roughly how far do you travel unseeing?
Show answer
Answer D: About 260 feet
At 45 mph you cover roughly 66 feet a second, so four seconds on a screen is around 260 feet of road that you never looked at.
-
24. A rear tire blows out on the highway. How does the vehicle usually behave?
Show answer
Answer C: The back end weaves or fishtails from side to side
A rear failure shows up as the tail wandering rather than a pull on the steering, so hold the wheel straight and let the speed drop gradually.
-
25. You come up behind a group of cyclists riding two abreast on a narrow rural road. What should you do?
Show answer
Answer A: Wait for a clear stretch and pass them as one group
Passing a group as a single unit when the way ahead is clear is safer than several rushed passes, and cutting through the group leaves nobody any escape room.