Traffic Laws & Speed — Practice Test 2026
Speed limits, lane use, passing, turning and the rules that carry the heaviest penalties.
What this section covers
- Speed limits
- Posted, unposted and special-zone limits, plus the basic speed law.
- Lanes & passing
- Choosing a lane, changing lanes and when passing is illegal.
- Turns & signaling
- Turn positioning, U-turns, right on red and signal timing.
Practice questions
25 questions, answered right here. Tap an option to see why.
- 1.
At a red light in Pennsylvania you may turn LEFT if:
Not quiteCorrect answer: A — You are in the left lane turning from a one-way street onto another one-way street, after stopping and yielding
The manual permits a left on red only from one one-way street onto another one-way street, from the left lane, after stopping and yielding — and only where no sign forbids it.
Every part of that condition matters. A left on red onto a two-way street is not permitted.
- 2.
Speeding fines in a New York work zone are:
Not quiteCorrect answer: B — Doubled
The manual states fines double for speeding in a work zone. Work-zone limits themselves can be as low as 25 mph.
Drivers assume the doubling depends on workers being present. In New York the zone itself carries it.
- 3.
When turning onto a one-way street in Illinois, you should:
Not quiteCorrect answer: B — Turn into the first lane you come to, then change lanes when safe
Turn into the nearest lane, then signal again, look back and move across when it is safe. A turn and a lane change are two manoeuvres, not one.
Sweeping straight into the far lane crosses the path of anyone turning into the same street from the other direction.
- 4.
In a residential district with no sign like this posted, when may you make a U-turn?
Not quiteCorrect answer: B — When no vehicle is approaching within 200 feet
In a California residential district you may make a U-turn only when no vehicle is approaching within 200 feet. U-turns are never allowed on a divided highway where you would have to cross a barrier, or where a sign prohibits them.
Signalling does not by itself make a U-turn legal — the clear-distance requirement still applies.
- 5.
In Pennsylvania, an "active work zone" is the portion of a work zone where:
Not quiteCorrect answer: C — Workers are on the roadway or on the shoulder next to an open travel lane
The definition turns on people being present beside live traffic, which is what the heavier penalties are protecting.
A coned-off area with nobody in it is not an active work zone, but the reduced limit may still apply.
- 6.
In California, unless a different limit is posted, the speed limit in a residential or business district is:
Not quiteCorrect answer: B — 25 mph
Where nothing is posted, California sets 25 mph in residential and business districts. This is a 'prima facie' limit — it applies by default, and driving faster is presumed unsafe.
No posted sign does not mean no limit. The default still applies and is enforceable.
- 7.
Unless otherwise posted, what is Florida's standard speed limit on streets and highways?
Not quiteCorrect answer: D — 55 mph
Streets and highways carry a standard 55 mph limit. The 70 mph figure applies to limited-access highways and some rural interstates.
A wide, fast-feeling road is not automatically a limited-access highway. The posted sign decides.
- 8.
The speed limit is 55 mph but heavy fog has reduced visibility to a few car lengths. Driving at 55 would be:
Not quiteCorrect answer: C — Illegal, because the basic speed law requires a speed safe for the conditions
The posted limit is a maximum for ideal conditions. The basic speed law makes any speed unsafe for the actual conditions an offence on its own.
"I was under the limit" is the most common and least effective defence after a bad-weather crash.
- 9.
Unless otherwise posted, what is Florida's standard speed limit in a municipal, business or residential area?
Not quiteCorrect answer: B — 30 mph
Florida's standard limits are 20 mph in school zones, 30 mph in municipal, business or residential areas, 55 mph on streets and highways, and 70 mph on limited-access highways.
Neighbouring states commonly use 25 mph for residential streets. Florida's standard figure is 30.
- 10.
You want to make a U-turn across a single set of double yellow lines to enter a driveway. In California this is:
Not quiteCorrect answer: B — Generally allowed, unless signs prohibit it
A single set of double yellow lines may be crossed to turn left into or out of a driveway or private road, or to make a U-turn. Two sets spaced two or more feet apart form a barrier that may not be crossed except at designated openings.
The double-yellow rule and the two-sets-with-a-gap rule look identical from the driver's seat. The gap is what makes it a barrier.
- 11.
California's Basic Speed Law says you may never drive faster than:
Not quiteCorrect answer: D — Is safe for the current conditions, whatever the posted limit is
The Basic Speed Law makes an unsafe speed illegal on its own. Rain, fog, traffic or a poor road surface all lower the legal maximum below whatever is posted.
Being under the sign is not a defence. A citation for unsafe speed does not require you to have exceeded the posted number.
- 12.
New York law requires you to signal how far before turning or changing lanes?
Not quiteCorrect answer: D — At least 100 feet
The manual states the signal must be given at least 100 feet ahead of the manoeuvre.
Neighbouring states use different distances. Pennsylvania, for instance, requires 300 feet at 35 mph or more.
- 13.
What is the California speed limit in an alley?
Not quiteCorrect answer: B — 15 mph
Alleys carry a 15 mph limit. California defines an alley as a road no wider than 25 feet used to reach the rear or side of buildings.
Alleys feel like private ground. They are public roadways with their own statutory limit.
- 14.
Two sets of solid double yellow lines spaced two or more feet apart mean:
Not quiteCorrect answer: C — A barrier you may not cross, turn across or make a U-turn over except at openings
Once the two sets are separated by two feet or more, California treats the space between them as a physical barrier.
It looks like an unusually wide centre line. Crossing it is treated as crossing a median.
- 15.
You are stopped at a red light in New York City and want to turn right. No sign is posted. You may:
Not quiteCorrect answer: A — Not turn — right on red is prohibited in New York City unless a sign permits it
New York City reverses the statewide rule: turns on red are banned unless a sign specifically allows them. Everywhere else in the state, right on red is permitted after a full stop.
This is the single most consequential difference between driving in New York City and the rest of the state.
- 16.
What is the highest speed limit the Texas Transportation Commission may set on a part of the highway system designed for it?
Not quiteCorrect answer: C — 85 mph
The Commission may raise limits to 75 mph on parts of the state highway system, to 80 mph on parts of IH-10 and IH-20 in named counties, and to no more than 85 mph where a highway is designed to accommodate that speed.
The 85 mph ceiling applies only to a specifically designed section, not to Texas highways generally.
- 17.
With no sign posted, the speed limit in a California business or residential district is:
Not quiteCorrect answer: C — 25 mph
The handbook gives 25 mph as the default for business and residential districts unless otherwise posted.
A wide, quiet residential street invites 35 or 40. The absence of a sign is not the absence of a limit.
- 18.
Where does the New York manual prohibit U-turns?
Not quiteCorrect answer: C — Where other drivers cannot see your vehicle from 500 feet away, in school zones, on expressways and in New York City business districts
The manual lists all of these. The sight-distance rule is the one that applies without any sign: near a hilltop or curve where you cannot be seen from 500 feet.
Drivers wait for a NO U-TURN sign. Most of New York's U-turn prohibitions are unsigned.
- 19.
You are towing a trailer on a California freeway with four lanes in your direction. Which lanes may you use?
Not quiteCorrect answer: D — Only the two lanes closest to the right edge
Vehicles subject to the 55 mph towing limit may use only the two lanes nearest the right edge on roads with three or more lanes in each direction.
Drivers assume the restriction is just "stay out of the fast lane". It is a specific two-lane allocation.
- 20.
You should signal a turn or lane change:
Not quiteCorrect answer: C — Well before the manoeuvre, so others can react
A signal is a prediction, not a commentary. Most states specify a minimum distance; the underlying point is that it must arrive before you act.
Signalling and turning in the same motion gives following drivers no information they can use.
- 21.
You have signalled and begun to change lanes when you see a vehicle in your blind spot. Your signal:
Not quiteCorrect answer: D — Does not give you the right to take the lane — you must abort the change
A signal announces an intention. It does not create right-of-way, and traffic already in the lane keeps it.
Signal-and-move is treated as a claim on the lane. It is a request, and it never replaces the shoulder check.
- 22.
In California, what is the speed limit in an alley unless otherwise posted?
Not quiteCorrect answer: A — 15 mph
California sets 15 mph in alleys, at blind intersections and at blind railway crossings. These are the places where you cannot see far enough to react at a higher speed.
The 25 mph residential default does not apply in an alley — alleys have their own, lower limit.
- 23.
On a California multi-lane road, the far-left lane is intended for:
Not quiteCorrect answer: A — Passing and left turns
The handbook is explicit: use the left lane to pass or turn left, and the right lane to enter or exit traffic.
Vehicles towing trailers are limited to 55 mph and are restricted to the two right-hand lanes on roads with three or more lanes in their direction.
- 24.
Where are speeding fines doubled in Florida?
Not quiteCorrect answer: A — In active school and work zones
The SPEEDING FINES DOUBLED sign is posted in active school and work zones.
The doubling is tied to the zone being active — people at work, or school in session — not to the cones being present.
- 25.
You want to turn right on a red light and no sign prohibits it. You must:
Not quiteCorrect answer: B — Come to a complete stop, then yield to pedestrians and cross traffic before turning
Right on red is a permission granted after a full stop. The turn yields to everything with the green, including people in the crosswalk.
The complete stop is skipped more often than any other requirement in this manoeuvre, and it is what the examiner is watching for.
Other sections
- Road Signs & SignalsShapes, colors and meanings — plus traffic lights, arrows and pavement markings.
- Right-of-Way & IntersectionsWho goes first — at stops, roundabouts, crosswalks and for emergency vehicles.
- Safe Driving & EmergenciesFollowing distance, bad weather, skids, breakdowns and sharing the road.
- Alcohol, Drugs & DistractionBAC limits, implied consent, phones behind the wheel and what they cost you.
- Parking, Fines & PaperworkWhere you may not park, point systems, insurance minimums and license suspension.
Questions people ask
- How many traffic laws & speed questions are on the test?
- Sections are not evenly weighted, and no state publishes an exact split. This bank holds 69 questions on traffic laws & speed, covering 3 topics.
- Do I get an explanation when I answer wrong?
- Yes — every question on this page shows the correct answer, why it is correct, and the mistake the wrong answers are built around.
Where this comes from
- Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD), 11th Edition — U.S. Federal Highway Administration
- MUTCD sign artwork on Wikimedia Commons — Wikimedia Commons — files created by the U.S. Federal Highway Administration
- California Driver Handbook — California DMV
- Texas Driver Handbook — Texas Department of Public Safety
- Florida Driver License Handbook — Florida HSMV
- New York State Driver's Manual — New York State DMV
- Illinois Rules of the Road — Illinois Secretary of State
- Pennsylvania Driver's Manual — PennDOT
Independent study aid. Not affiliated with, endorsed by or connected to any Department of Motor Vehicles or government agency. Questions are written from the official handbooks listed above; no exam result is guaranteed.