Page updated 2026-10-19.
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Key Arkansas DMV rules and numbers
These are key rules and numbers from the Arkansas handbook, a few per topic so they fit on one printed page. We favor rules that state a specific number. Every fact below comes from our free Arkansas DMV practice test question bank, which has 500 questions across 9 topics, checked against the Arkansas handbook (last verified 2026-09-07).
Speed limits
- The reflective orange triangle with a red border identifies a slow-moving vehicle. (Handbook, p. 26)
- Darkness makes objects harder to see, so at night you need to be able to stop within the distance your headlights light up. (Handbook, p. 58)
- On packed snow, the guide says to cut your speed in half, and on ice you must slow to a coast. (Handbook, p. 55)
- The Arkansas guide lists places where space to maneuver is limited, including locations where people and their vehicles are parked. (Handbook, p. 57)
- The guide names schools, playgrounds, and residential streets as places where you need to slow down because children are present. (Handbook, p. 57)
Right of way
- Traffic already circulating has priority over a vehicle approaching the entrance. (Handbook, p. 35)
- A driveway entrance does not erase the pedestrian’s priority on the sidewalk. (Handbook, p. 35)
- The guide gives pedestrians who carry a white cane or use a guide dog absolute right of way. (Handbook, p. 34)
- With no sign or signal controlling the intersection, the vehicle approaching from the right receives priority. (Handbook, p. 39)
- After making a complete stop, the vehicle that arrived first goes first at an all-corner stop. (Handbook, p. 39)
Alcohol and DUI
- The guide states that a person under 21 may not purchase or consume alcohol. (Handbook, p. 75)
- An under-21 alcohol purchase or possession conviction can affect driving privileges through suspension, revocation, or disqualification. (Handbook, p. 75)
- For a driver who is at least 21, Arkansas identifies 0.08 percent BAC or BrAC as the DWI threshold in the guide. (Handbook, p. 74)
- The under-21 DUI threshold is 0.02 percent BAC or BrAC. (Handbook, p. 75)
- Alcohol is involved in approximately 38 percent of traffic crashes in which someone is killed. (Handbook, p. 73)
Signals and markings
- Arkansas directs drivers to use turn signals 100 feet before a lane change, a right turn, a left turn, a merge, or parking. (Handbook, p. 53)
- Continue waiting when railroad red lights flash, even when no train is visible. (Handbook, p. 29)
- A hidden area beyond a hill or curve may contain a stopped vehicle, person, or oncoming traffic. (Handbook, p. 58)
- A flashing yellow signal tells the driver to slow down and proceed with caution. (Handbook, p. 24)
- The center turn lane may help a driver turning left from an intersecting street or driveway gain access to traffic, but it is not an acceleration lane. (Handbook, p. 32)
Parking
- Anyone who illegally uses another person's special certificate has committed fraud and can be found guilty of a Class A misdemeanor under Arkansas Code 27-15-305. (Handbook, p. 14)
- The second offense of misusing a special certificate is a minimum of $250 and not more than $1,000, plus a six month driver's license suspension, and the owner is liable for towing, impoundment, attorney fees, court costs and related fees. (Handbook, p. 14)
- When parallel parking, your vehicle should be 18 inches or less from the curb. (Handbook, p. 41)
- Special Certificates must be returned to the Department of Motor Vehicles, Special Division, within 30 days of moving or in case of death. (Handbook, p. 14)
- Arkansas prohibits parking within 20 feet of a crosswalk at an intersection. (Handbook, p. 42)
Safe driving
- When rain or fog reduces the view ahead to no more than 200 feet, the guide advises not driving faster than thirty miles per hour. (Handbook, p. 58)
- During heavy rain, tires can lose all traction with the road at 50 mph. (Handbook, p. 55)
- From 2018 to 2021, work zone crashes rose by more than 70 percent in Arkansas, and in 2024 there were more than 1,600 work zone crashes resulting in more than 53 serious injuries or fatalities. (Handbook, p. 16)
- National research has found that distracted teens who are texting while driving are 23 times more likely to be involved in a crash, and those crashes are often more serious because the driver reacts late or not at all. (Handbook, p. 17)
- Sending or reading a text takes your eyes off the road for five seconds, and at 55 mph that is like driving the length of an entire football field with your eyes closed. (Handbook, p. 45)
Road signs
- At a yield sign you must yield to other vehicles and stop when necessary, and a driver who fails to yield could receive a fine of up to $1,000 and suspension of their driver's license for 180 days. (Handbook, p. 26)
- A stop sign requires a complete stop, followed by waiting until crossing vehicles and pedestrians have cleared the intersection. (Handbook, p. 25)
- A yield sign calls for a reduction in speed and yielding the right of way to traffic in the intersection. (Handbook, p. 26)
- The manual describes a do not enter sign as a red circle crossed by a line, meaning the indicated entry is not allowed. (Handbook, p. 26)
- A red circle with a slash marks a regulation that prohibits a particular maneuver. (Handbook, p. 27)
Laws and paperwork
- An unrestricted license requires minimum uncorrected visual acuity of 20/40. (Handbook, p. 5)
- The manual sets 18 as the minimum age for a non-restricted license. (Handbook, p. 4)
- The restricted MD credential permits operation only on motorcycles displacing 250 cubic centimeters or less. (Handbook, p. 4)
- Besides visual acuity, your field of vision must be 140 degrees for a person with two functional eyes or 105 degrees for a person with one functional eye. (Handbook, p. 5)
- Act 1289 sets a five-dollar fee for each written examination. (Handbook, p. 1)
Emergencies
- The crash report must be filed within 30 days of the accident. (Handbook, p. 81)
- In its section on avoiding collisions, the guide says to make sure you grip the steering wheel with both hands, and that the best way to grip it is to place your hands at the 10 o'clock and 2 o'clock positions. (Handbook, p. 78)
- A median narrower than twenty feet does not separate the stopping duty. (Handbook, p. 13)
- On a multilane highway, move to the farthest lane away from a stopped law enforcement vehicle with its lights turned on whenever changing lanes is possible. (Handbook, p. 11)
- A flashing red light carries the same stopping requirement as a stop sign. (Handbook, p. 24)
Want the reasoning behind these rules? Study the handbook, chapter by chapter, in 23 short lessons quoted from the Arkansas manual.
Signs
Sign shape and color carry meaning before you even read the words. A red octagon always means stop, a red-bordered triangle pointing down means yield, and yellow diamonds warn of a hazard ahead. For every sign image used in our practice test, with the exact meaning and explanation, see the full road sign glossary.
Keep studying
This cheat sheet is a summary, not a substitute for practice. Test yourself with the free Arkansas DMV practice test, which explains the reasoning behind every answer, or see Arkansas DMV facts and fees before test day.