NH Permit Practice Test 21

All 20 questions in test 21

Every question below comes from the New Hampshire question bank on this page. Open a question to see the correct answer and the explanation. Nothing here is hidden behind a signup.

1. 1. After stopping at a New Hampshire intersection, what extra check comes before moving again?

   1. Check the rear seat passengers
   2. Check the fuel and oil levels
   3. Cross traffic plus bicyclists
   4. Check your phone for messages
   Show answer

   Cross traffic plus bicyclists. Crossing traffic and bicyclists get a dedicated fresh check after the stop, beyond the look sequence that brought you there. Riders approach quietly along the curb where a stopped driver's attention fades. Bicyclists crossing get yielded to like other vehicles and pedestrians. Take the breath, sweep both curbs and lanes, then move; haste after a stop causes a distinct family of intersection crashes.

   Study this in the handbook: Toll lanes, turns, U-turns and intersections

2. 2. A New Hampshire driver parks directly in front of a neighbor's driveway with no sign posted. Is that allowed?

   1. Yes, without any sign it is legal
   2. No, driveway fronts stay clear
   3. Yes, for up to one hour
   4. Just overnight parking is prohibited
   Show answer

   No, driveway fronts stay clear. Driveway fronts sit on the unmarked illegal list beside sidewalks, intersections, crosswalks, bridges, and tunnels, so no posted sign is needed to make the space off limits. An hour limit appears nowhere in that list. Blocking an entrance traps residents and delays emergency access to the home. When a legal space looks scarce, circle once more; the driveway mouth stays empty even at midnight on a crowded street.

   Study this in the handbook: Parking rules and distances

3. 3. Driving beside a row of parked cars in New Hampshire, what pedestrian risk should shape your speed?

   1. None, parked rows are safe
   2. Children never play near cars
   3. Pedestrians always look first before crossing
   4. People can walk out between the vehicles
   Show answer

   People can walk out between the vehicles. Parked rows hide bodies until they step between bumpers into your lane, so speed should already be down with a foot ready. Assuming walkers always look first contradicts how children chase balls. Playgrounds, parks, bus stops, and school zones concentrate the same risk. Scan for feet under cars and silhouettes through windows; the shadow moving between two sedans is a person deciding your next second.

   Study this in the handbook: Pedestrians and bicyclists

4. 4. What hazard can result when a driver travels far below the normal flow of traffic?

   1. It can make other drivers change lanes or pass unsafely.
   2. It increases the chance of a tire failure.
   3. It hides the vehicle's brake lights from following traffic.
   4. It makes the engine run hotter.
   Show answer

   It can make other drivers change lanes or pass unsafely.. Driving far below the normal flow can block traffic behind the slow vehicle. The manual warns that following drivers may jump from lane to lane or take chances passing where it is unsafe. A tire failure, hidden brake lights, and extra engine heat are not the traffic hazard identified in that passage. On an interstate, 45 mph is the minimum in good conditions, but the broader warning is about creating a dangerous difference from normal traffic speed. The relevant warning is the risk that other drivers will make unsafe maneuvers to get around the slow vehicle.

   Study this in the handbook: Speed limits

5. 5. How close to a railroad crossing may a vehicle be parked in New Hampshire?

   1. 20 feet from the nearest rail
   2. 30 feet from the nearest rail
   3. 50 feet from the nearest rail
   4. 75 feet from the nearest rail
   Show answer

   50 feet from the nearest rail. A vehicle must stay at least 50 feet from the nearest rail when parking near a railroad crossing. Trains overhang the track and need a wide clearance, and a stopped car close to the rail can be struck even if it is off the roadway. The 20 foot figure is the crosswalk buffer, 30 feet is the sign and signal distance, and 75 feet is the fire station rule across the street. Treat the crossing as a no stop zone. If you must pull over near tracks, put the whole vehicle beyond the 50 foot mark.

   Study this in the handbook: Parking rules and distances

6. 6. A car has a day/night inside mirror. How should the driver set it?

   1. Keep it on the night setting at all times.
   2. Switch it to the night setting whenever it rains.
   3. Set it for the current time of day.
   4. Use the night setting only on highways.
   Show answer

   Set it for the current time of day.. A day/night inside mirror should be set for the current time of day. The day setting is appropriate in daylight and the night setting reduces glare after dark. Leaving night mode on all day can darken the rear view, while rain or highway travel does not determine the setting. The manual places this check with adjusting the mirrors before driving, so the choice is based on daylight or darkness rather than season, road type, or weather. The mirror should be ready before the vehicle moves.

   Study this in the handbook: Vehicle checks, seating and restraints

7. 7. An antique car was built without safety restraints in New Hampshire. How does the under 18 restraint rule treat it?

   1. Children may never ride in it
   2. It is excepted from the restraint rule
   3. Belts must be added before any ride starts
   4. Only the driver is excepted
   Show answer

   It is excepted from the restraint rule. Antique vehicles never manufactured with restraints are excepted, since the law cannot demand equipment the factory never installed. Ordering belts retrofitted before any ride invents a condition the exception removes. Motorcycles and heavy school buses share the exception family. Owners of vintage cars should still weigh the risk honestly, because an exception on paper offers no padding in a collision with modern traffic.

   Study this in the handbook: Vehicle checks, seating and restraints

8. 8. How many children died of heatstroke in hot vehicles in 2024, in the federal figures the New Hampshire manual cites?

   1. 9 children
   2. 90 children
   3. 39 children
   4. No deaths were recorded
   Show answer

   39 children. Federal safety figures counted 39 children lost to heatstroke in 2024 after being left in hot vehicles. Nine understates a toll that repeats every summer across the country. A turned off vehicle begins heating immediately, quicker as the day grows warmer. The statistic is why the back seat check belongs in muscle memory, repeated even when you are certain the seat started empty that morning.

   Study this in the handbook: Vision, fatigue, emotions and hot vehicles

9. 9. When should a New Hampshire driver check mirrors to stay aware of traffic behind?

   1. Only when parking the vehicle somewhere
   2. One single check per trip is enough
   3. Only while driving on interstate highways
   4. Before slowing, stopping, or turning
   Show answer

   Before slowing, stopping, or turning. Mirror checks belong before slowing down, stopping, turning, or changing lanes, repeated continually so the rear picture never goes stale. A single glance per trip misses the motorcycle that arrived thirty seconds ago. Looking ahead and to the sides completes the search pattern around the car. Tap the mirror with your eyes before the brake lights glow, and the driver behind becomes part of your plan instead of a surprise.

   Study this in the handbook: Visual search and following distance

10. 10. The road is wet and patched with sand and gravel in New Hampshire. Why do bicyclists need extra care there?

    1. Bicycles stop faster on gravel
    2. Bikes suffer such surfaces far more
    3. Sand and gravel give bicycle tires extra traction
    4. Cars lose more grip than bikes
    Show answer

    Bikes suffer such surfaces far more. Wet pavement, sand, and gravel upset two narrow tires far more than four wide ones, so riders wobble, slow, and change line unexpectedly. Assuming a bicycle stops shorter on gravel inverts the physics. Give a wider berth and a slower pass until the surface cleans up. Watch their front wheel rather than their shoulders; the first twitch over a sand patch tells you where the bike is about to wander.

    Study this in the handbook: Pedestrians and bicyclists

11. 11. What makes a New Hampshire work zone hazardous even when no speed limit sign changes?

    1. Narrower lanes and rough pavement create hazards
    2. Toll lanes require drivers to stop and pay cash
    3. Workers direct traffic at every hour of the day
    4. Traffic signals are removed from every crossing
    Show answer

    Narrower lanes and rough pavement create hazards. Narrowed lanes squeeze room for error while rough pavement upsets tires and lengthens stops. Slower travel stays required even when posted numbers never change near barrels. Flaggers appear at some sites, yet hazards persist through empty stretches at night. Toll booths belong to different roads entirely. Ease off before the first cone, widen the gap ahead, and hold a lane position that leaves space for workers and equipment until the end sign restores normal width.

12. 12. Your exit appears just ahead of a slow truck in New Hampshire. What must you avoid doing?

    1. Slowing down behind the truck instead
    2. Signaling your exit early
    3. Cutting across its bow for your exit
    4. Taking the next exit calmly
    Show answer

    Cutting across its bow for your exit. Diving across a truck's bow for an exit, or racing it into a one lane construction stretch, places your car inside its stopping distance with no escape. Taking the next exit costs a minute; the shortcut can cost everything. Truck speed judgment is unreliable at intersections too, another reason patience wins. Signal early, slot behind, and let the rig clear; exits repeat, while a crushed car does not get a second attempt.

    Study this in the handbook: Emergency vehicles, Sherrill's Law and traffic stops

13. 13. A train is approaching a New Hampshire crossing while its lights are flashing. When may a driver cross?

    1. After the train clears the near rail.
    2. After the lights stop flashing or the trains have passed.
    3. After another driver signals that it is safe.
    4. As soon as the driver can see the train.
    Show answer

    After the lights stop flashing or the trains have passed.. At a railroad crossing, a driver must wait until the flashing lights stop or the trains have passed before proceeding across the tracks. The first train clearing the near rail is not enough because another train may be approaching, especially where more than one track is present. A horn from a following driver does not change the signal, and flashing lights cannot be ignored. The signal remains the controlling warning until its flashing ends or the train movement has cleared.

    Study this in the handbook: Regulatory, guide, work zone and railroad signs

14. 14. Which sign shape is reserved for stop signs in New Hampshire?

    1. A pentagon
    2. A sideways pointed triangle
    3. A diamond
    4. An octagon with 8 sides
    Show answer

    An octagon with 8 sides. Eight sides belong to the stop sign alone, so the shape can be recognized from the back or in snow before any lettering shows. A pentagon serves school zones and crossings instead. At that octagon, wheels must stop fully behind the stop line or crosswalk, or before the intersection when neither exists. The unique silhouette is a cue to prepare your foot for the brake early, even when the sign faces away from you across an intersection.

    Study this in the handbook: Sign shapes, colors and warning signs

15. 15. How does a back up warning alert a New Hampshire driver to an object directly behind the vehicle?

    1. By locking the brakes
    2. By sounding the horn automatically
    3. By flashing the headlights
    4. Through sound, vibration, or a mix
    Show answer

    Through sound, vibration, or a mix. Sound, vibration, or a blend of the two carries the alert when something sits directly behind the vehicle during reversing. Automatic horn blasts are not part of the design and could startle people nearby. The feature scans behind the vehicle once reverse is selected, yet the driver still steers and judges distance. A beep quickening or a seat buzz means stop, look again over the shoulder, and sort out what the sensors found before creeping farther.

    Study this in the handbook: Vehicle checks, seating and restraints

16. 16. For ordinary night driving in New Hampshire, how much should a driver add to the daytime following distance?

    1. No addition is needed
    2. At least one additional second
    3. Only half a second at most
    4. One car length only
    Show answer

    At least one additional second. Night conditions call for at least one additional second of following distance beyond the daytime gap, since headlights limit how far trouble can be seen. Adding nothing pretends darkness changes nothing, yet hazards appear later and reactions start later. Unfamiliar roads at night demand even more, a full two extra seconds. Count the gap against a roadside sign after dark, tack the extra second onto the usual four, and let tail lights ahead stay comfortably distant.

    Study this in the handbook: Rural roads and night driving

17. 17. A New Hampshire driver arrested for an alcohol offense refuses the test. What may happen?

    1. A warning with no penalty at all
    2. A mandatory night in the county jail
    3. Automatic vehicle forfeiture by police
    4. Loss of driving privileges
    Show answer

    Loss of driving privileges. Operating a vehicle in New Hampshire implies consent to blood, breath, or urine testing after an alcohol or drug arrest. Refusing the test may cost the driver their driving privileges, separate from whatever happens on the criminal charge. A warning with no penalty misreads the consequence, while jail or vehicle forfeiture are not the automatic results described. The choice to refuse is not a safe loophole. If an officer requests a sample, understand that the refusal itself can trigger a license loss and call a lawyer afterward.

    Study this in the handbook: Suspensions, points and habitual offenders

18. 18. Your swerve clears the hazard in New Hampshire. What steering finishes the recovery?

    1. Hold the swerve angle
    2. Steer opposite to straighten out
    3. Let go of the wheel for a moment
    4. Turn further the same way
    Show answer

    Steer opposite to straighten out. Once the danger clears, opposite steering straightens the car and returns control before the swerve becomes a spin. Holding the angle drives you off the far side of the road. Think in two beats: away from trouble, then back to straight, each firm and measured. On empty roads, rehearse the rhythm mentally so hands remember the recovery half, which most drivers forget while celebrating the dodge.

    Study this in the handbook: Emergency braking, swerving and skids

19. 19. Which vehicle falls under a New Hampshire Class C license?

    1. Seating over 16, outside Classes A and B
    2. Any family sedan
    3. A motorcycle with a sidecar
    4. A farm tractor driven along a public road
    Show answer

    Seating over 16, outside Classes A and B. Class C covers a vehicle outside the Class A and Class B definitions when it is designed to seat more than 16 people, including the driver, or when it must display hazardous materials placards. A family sedan is a Class D vehicle. A 17 seat vehicle reaches the seating threshold because the driver counts in the total. The class depends on the vehicle's design and use, not on whether the driver is taking a family trip or driving for work.

    Study this in the handbook: Youth Operator license, restrictions and renewal

20. 20. A driver leaves a New Hampshire crash without stopping to report it. What insurance consequence can follow at reinstatement?

    1. SR-22 proof of insurance is required
    2. Nothing beyond paying the repair bill
    3. A warning letter only
    4. Cheaper insurance by law
    Show answer

    SR-22 proof of insurance is required. Failing to stop and report when involved in a crash joins the convictions demanding SR-22 proof before privileges return. The repair bill alone understates a hit and run record. Homicide by vehicle and second offense reckless driving share the list, showing the company this offense keeps. Stopping, aiding, and exchanging information at the scene avoids both the criminal exposure and the years of certified filings afterward.

    Study this in the handbook: Crashes, reports and financial responsibility