Chapter 3: Outside the City Limits — theory test questions and answers

Answer B: 140 km/h. The maximum on major roads is 140 km/h; inside cities it is usually 80 km/h and outside built-up areas the standard limit is 100 km/h.

Answer A: 100 km/h. Outside built-up areas the standard speed limit is 100 km/h.

Answer A: 10 metres. Even a 40 km/h impact is equivalent to falling onto a concrete floor from 10 metres.

Answer C: Single-vehicle accidents. Because many drivers overestimate their abilities and drive too fast, single-vehicle accidents are the most common type outside built-up areas.

Answer A: Gravel roads compared with asphalt. On gravel the braking distance is much longer than on asphalt, and wet asphalt is more slippery than dry.

Answer B: When approaching a bus that has stopped to set down or pick up passengers. Low speed is required near stopped buses, at crossings, junctions, bends, hill brows, road works, slippery roads and wherever visibility is poor.

Answer A: Speed blindness: 60 km/h feels like a standstill; you may be faster than you think. Speed blindness makes 60 km/h feel almost stationary after motorway speeds; check your speedometer, which is very seldom wrong.

Answer B: About 110 metres. At 60 km/h a car needs about 35 metres to stop; at 120 km/h about 110 metres.

Answer A: You tend to misjudge your braking distance. Speed blindness makes you misjudge braking distance; without watching the speedometer you can be 20–30 km/h faster than you think.

Answer C: It narrows and you fail to notice things off to the side. Tunnel vision narrows the visual field with increasing speed; counteract it by adapting speed and scanning all parts of the road.

Answer D: Adapt your speed and keep shifting your gaze to scan the road. Adapt speed to local conditions and keep shifting your gaze; scanning counteracts tunnel vision, which is also aggravated by stress.

Answer C: Entered the bend too fast instead of slowing down before it. The secret of bends is to slow down before the bend; a bend approached too fast can feel like a sharp corner with disastrous results.

Answer A: Only when you have straightened the wheel as you leave the bend. Too much acceleration in a bend can make the wheels lose grip; increase speed only once the wheel is straightened on leaving the bend.

Answer B: Braking or accelerating too hard in the bend. Braking on a bend makes the vehicle unstable and likely to skid; brake before the bend, and use the accelerator only enough to drive round it.

Answer C: Count three seconds from when the car ahead passes a fixed point until you pass it. Choose a reference point; when the car ahead passes it, count one hundred and one … one hundred and three. If you reach it sooner you are too close.

Answer D: 22 metres. In one second of reaction time you cover 17 m at 60 km/h, 22 m at 80 km/h and 33 m at 120 km/h.

Answer D: About 1 minute. Driving faster saves as little as 1 minute over 10 km, while creating unnecessary stress and accidents.

Answer C: Slow down before the right-hand bend and use the accelerator lightly through it. This warns of a right-hand bend: reduce speed before entering, avoid braking in the bend, and accelerate only when the wheel is straight again.

Answer B: Slippery road. This is the slippery road warning; reduce speed and avoid harsh braking or acceleration.

Answer C: Maximum speed 60 km/h until another sign changes the limit. Maximum speed signs apply until another sign imposes a different limit.

Answer A: Loose gravel or chippings. Loose gravel or chippings: braking distance is much longer than on asphalt, so slow down and keep your distance.

Answer D: Carry out a systematic check, taking into account the weather, destination and road state. You must be able to carry out a systematic check of your car before setting out, considering the weather, your destination and the road; the driver’s manual gives guidance.

Answer B: Slow down in good time and keep well clear of the works. Road workers work under pressure; show consideration by slowing down early and keeping well clear of the site.

Answer D: At least 300 metres. Turning onto the road takes 5–6 seconds, in which a car at 80 km/h closes about 120 m; wait unless the oncoming car is at least 300 m away.

Answer C: No, remain where you are until you know it is safe; indicators can be wrong. Do not trust an indicator: drivers forget them or turn them on by mistake, and an indicating vehicle may hide another behind it.

Answer A: A safety zone and refuge for broken-down vehicles. The hard shoulder is a safety zone for broken-down vehicles; never use it at night or in poor light, and parking on it is prohibited.

Answer A: The overtaking driver has misjudged the meeting point and risks a head-on collision. The brain is poorly equipped to judge distance, oncoming speed and overtaking distance together; misjudging the meeting point can end in a head-on crash.

Answer B: The blind spot, then switch on the indicator. Check the road, the centre and side mirrors, then the blind spot, then indicate, check the road again and start overtaking.

Answer B: Keep as far right as possible and do not speed up. Help the other driver by keeping right and not speeding up; speeding up prolongs the overtaking and creates risk.

Answer B: When it can see the overtaken vehicle in its centre mirror, using the right indicator. Do not move back to the right until you see the overtaken vehicle in your centre mirror, and use your right indicator.

Answer A: At the road ahead, not at the vehicle you are passing. Do not look at the other vehicle while overtaking; you may steer in the direction you are looking. Avoid sudden swerves.

Answer B: The left-hand indicator. After checking mirrors and blind spot, switch on the left indicator to move out; the right indicator is used to return.

Answer B: If, after overtaking, you would be unable to move back into the right-hand lane. Overtaking is prohibited when the lane is blocked, when crossing the centre line with oncoming traffic, when the vehicle ahead signals left, when a vehicle behind is overtaking, or when you cannot return to the right lane.

Answer C: If there is traffic coming from the other direction. On single-lane-each-way roads, crossing the centre line is prohibited when there is oncoming traffic.

Answer B: 300 to 400 metres. Use the mirror in good time, then signal and move into position some 300 to 400 metres before the turn.

Answer C: If hit from behind it will not be pushed into the oncoming lane. Stop a few metres before the junction with wheels straight; if rear-ended with wheels turned left you could be forced into oncoming traffic.

Answer B: The driver who attempted to make the turn. About two thirds of left-turn junction accidents involve vehicles from behind, and the law places sole responsibility on the turning driver.

Answer A: Pull up at a lay-by or parking place spaced along the road. Preferably stop at one of the special lay-bys; a car parked on a main road is always a potential hazard, and parking on primary roads outside built-up areas is prohibited.

Answer D: Your triangular warning sign. If your car breaks down, pull over as far right as possible and set out your triangular warning sign.

Answer D: Driving a vehicle designed for speeds below 60 km/h. On a motorway it is prohibited to drive vehicles designed for less than 60 km/h, to stop, park, reverse, turn around, walk or cycle.

Answer C: They occur at higher speeds and involve more vehicles. Motorway accidents happen at higher speed and involve more vehicles, so injuries and loss of life are greater.

Answer C: Match motorway speed, give priority to motorway traffic, join a gap in the right lane. Adjust your speed to the motorway traffic before joining, give priority to traffic already on the motorway, and join a suitable gap in the right-hand lane.

Answer B: At least one metre for each km/h of your speed. Leave at least one metre per km/h of speed (check with the three-second rule) and at least two chevrons where painted.

Answer D: At least two. Where chevrons are painted on the motorway, keep at least two between you and the vehicle in front.

Answer D: Repeatedly changing lanes; keep to a right-hand lane and change only when needed. Maintain strict lane discipline: avoid repeatedly changing lanes, keep steady in your lane and do not wander into another lane.

Answer C: Overtaking only; return right as soon as it is safe. The left lane is for overtaking, not a “fast lane”; return to the right-hand lane as soon as safe.

Answer D: It forces faster drivers behind to overtake on the wrong side. Drivers who stay in the fast lane ignore faster traffic behind and force them to overtake on the wrong side; complete your overtake and return.

Answer D: Get into the right-hand lane in plenty of time and move onto the slip road. Leave from the right-hand lane onto the slip road; get into lane early, one lane at a time, and never cut across at the last moment.

Answer A: Carry on to the next exit. If you miss your exit, carry on to the next one; stopping, reversing and U-turns are prohibited on motorways.

Answer C: No, the hard shoulder is not an exit road; use it only for emergencies. The hard shoulder is not an exit road; never queue or drive on it, though you may pull over there in an emergency.

Answer D: Beginning of motorway. This is the beginning-of-motorway sign; motorway rules apply from here (no stopping, parking, reversing, U-turns, walking or cycling).

Answer A: End of motorway: the road you are joining has different rules. End of Motorway signs are placed at all exits; expect different rules and oncoming traffic on the road you join.

Answer C: Minimum speed 60 km/h. A blue circle with a number is a mandatory minimum speed sign; the red-bordered circle is the maximum speed limit.

Answer D: If one vehicle gets stuck the other can still travel to get help. Always travel with at least one other vehicle so help is at hand; also inform family or friends of your plans.

Answer A: Yes, they are no different from highways in that respect. Despite their lower standard, dirt roads are no different from highways in speed limits and normal driving rules.