PA Permit Practice Test 20

All 20 questions in test 20

Every question below comes from the Pennsylvania 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. How often should a Pennsylvania driver have vision checked, even without symptoms?

   1. Every five years
   2. Only at license renewal
   3. Only after reaching age 65
   4. Every one or two years
   Show answer

   Every one or two years. Have your vision checked every one or two years. Peripheral vision, distance judgment and low-light vision can deteriorate because of disease or normal aging, and you may not notice without regular examinations. Wear needed glasses or contacts every time you drive. Hearing can also warn of vehicles in blind spots, emergency vehicles and trains at crossings. Manual wording for this rule: Have your vision checked every one (1) or two (2) years.

   Study this in the handbook: Space cushion, following distance and scanning

2. 2. Your vehicle has anti-lock brakes and you must stop in a hurry. How should you apply the brakes?

   1. Pump the pedal quickly several times
   2. Press lightly and coast to a stop
   3. Maintain firm and continuous pressure; do not pump the pedal
   4. Alternate hard and soft presses every second
   Show answer

   Maintain firm and continuous pressure; do not pump the pedal. With ABS, maintain firm and continuous brake pressure and do not pump the pedal. Mechanical noises or slight pulsations should not alarm you. With conventional brakes, the manual instead instructs you to press and release repeatedly. Check your owner’s manual to learn which braking system your vehicle has before an emergency. The cited manual passage: With ABS, maintain firm and continuous pressure on the brake - your vehicle will not skid. Do not pump the brake pedal.

   Study this in the handbook: Skids, blowouts, floods and brake trouble

3. 3. You turn left from a minor street onto a major street in Pennsylvania. How large a gap should you allow from a vehicle approaching from your right?

   1. About six seconds
   2. About nine seconds
   3. About eight seconds
   4. About twelve seconds
   Show answer

   About nine seconds. When turning left from a minor onto a major street, allow a nine-second gap between you and a vehicle approaching from the right. Never start a left turn until you can see that all lanes you need to cross are clear and you can safely make the turn. The cited manual passage: Is stopped. If you are turning from a minor onto a major street, allow a 9-second gap between you and any vehicle approaching from the right.

   Study this in the handbook: Right of way at intersections and roundabouts

4. 4. A Pennsylvania officer asks for your license, registration, and insurance cards during a stop. How should you hand them over?

   1. Hand over your whole wallet so the officer can sort it
   2. Give only the requested items, not your wallet
   3. Place the items on the roof of the vehicle
   4. Toss the items slowly toward the officer
   Show answer

   Give only the requested items, not your wallet. Wait until the officer asks you to retrieve your license, registration, and insurance cards. Hand over only the requested items, not your wallet. Keep your hands in view, limit your movements, and stay inside the vehicle unless the officer asks you to get out. The passage behind this item: Wait until the officer asks you to retrieve your driver’s license, registration and insurance cards. Do not hand the officer your wallet - just the requested items.

   Study this in the handbook: Points, insurance and crash duties

5. 5. After a Pennsylvania driving privilege is restored, the record normally shows five points. Which suspensions are named as exceptions to that five point reset?

   1. Any suspension for unpaid fines
   2. Only suspensions lasting more than one year
   3. A 15-day suspension from a hearing for the second accumulation of six points, and a suspension for failing to respond to a citation
   4. There are no exceptions; every record shows five points
   Show answer

   A 15-day suspension from a hearing for the second accumulation of six points, and a suspension for failing to respond to a citation. Restoration usually resets the visible record to five points regardless of how many points stood there before the suspension, but Pennsylvania names two carve-outs. A 15-day suspension resulting from a hearing for the second accumulation of six points, and a suspension for failing to respond to a citation, do not follow that reset rule. Unpaid fines and suspension length are not the stated exceptions. Knowing the carve-outs matters because a driver planning around a five point record after one of these two sanctions would misjudge how close the next six point action sits.

   Study this in the handbook: Points, insurance and crash duties

6. 6. You carry a backpack, luggage, and tools inside your Pennsylvania vehicle. Where should heavier loose items ride?

   1. On the rear window deck where you can see them
   2. Loose on the floor where they can slide freely
   3. On a passenger's lap for quick access
   4. In the trunk when possible, or secured with the vehicle's seat belts
   Show answer

   In the trunk when possible, or secured with the vehicle's seat belts. In a crash, loose items become projectiles that continue traveling at the vehicle’s pre-impact speed. Put heavier objects such as backpacks, luggage and tools in the trunk whenever possible, or secure them with the vehicle’s seat belts. Never store items on the rear window deck. Manual wording for this rule: Put heavier objects, such as backpacks, luggage and tools in your trunk, whenever possible, or secure them with the vehicle’s seat belts.

   Study this in the handbook: Seat belts, child seats and the anti-texting law

7. 7. A Pennsylvania DUI is charged as an ungraded misdemeanor and you contest the case. What trial right does that charge withhold?

   1. You are not entitled to a jury trial
   2. You are not entitled to call witnesses
   3. You are not entitled to appeal any result
   4. You must be tried by a jury of twelve
   Show answer

   You are not entitled to a jury trial. The manual describes a DUI with a maximum probation or prison term of six months as an ungraded misdemeanor. It identifies first offenders at any impairment level and second offenders at the General Impairment or High Rate levels in this category. If you contest an ungraded misdemeanor, the manual says you are not entitled to a jury trial. The cited manual passage: The charge of ungraded misdemeanor means if you contest the case, you are not entitled to a jury trial.

8. 8. In a Pennsylvania DUI case, how much community service may a judge impose?

   1. Up to 25 hours
   2. Up to 50 hours
   3. Exactly 100 hours in every case
   4. Up to 150 hours
   Show answer

   Up to 150 hours. A judge may impose up to 150 hours of community service in a DUI case. This is a maximum, not a requirement to impose the same number of hours in every case. The 25-hour and 50-hour options understate that maximum, and exactly 100 hours in every case is not the rule. Controlling manual language: Additionally, a judge may impose up to 150 hours of community service.

   Study this in the handbook: DUI, chemical tests and zero tolerance

9. 9. After six months on a junior license, the non-family minor passenger limit normally rises. Which junior driver is barred from that increase?

   1. A driver who has carried an immediate family member as a passenger
   2. A driver whose parent has consented in writing to more passengers
   3. A driver who has ever been in a crash where they were partly or fully responsible, or who has been convicted of any driving violation
   4. A driver who completed an approved driver training course
   Show answer

   A driver who has ever been in a crash where they were partly or fully responsible, or who has been convicted of any driving violation. After the first six months on a junior license, the usual limit increases from one to three passengers under 18 who are not immediate family members. That increase does not apply to a junior driver who has ever been partly or fully responsible for a crash or has been convicted of a driving violation. The manual separately allows more passengers when an accompanying parent, guardian, person in loco parentis, or spouse age 18 or older is in the vehicle, subject to the available seat belts.

   Study this in the handbook: Junior permit and junior license limits

10. 10. Except in emergencies or when a police officer directs otherwise, when may a driver stop, stand, or park on a Pennsylvania limited access highway?

    1. At any wide shoulder during daylight
    2. Whenever traffic is light at night
    3. When official traffic control devices indicate it is allowed
    4. For passenger pickup near an exit ramp
    Show answer

    When official traffic control devices indicate it is allowed. You must not stop, stand or park on a limited access highway unless official traffic control devices indicate it is allowed, with emergency and officer-direction exceptions noted in the question. Shoulder width, light traffic and passenger pickup do not themselves provide that permission. The passage behind this item: On a limited access highway, unless official traffic control devices indicate you are allowed.

    Study this in the handbook: Parking rules and distances

11. 11. What do Pennsylvania service signs look like, and what do they show?

    1. Square or rectangular blue signs with white letters or symbols showing services at the next exit
    2. Green rectangles listing cities and distances
    3. Brown signs pointing to parks and museums
    4. Orange signs announcing road work ahead
    Show answer

    Square or rectangular blue signs with white letters or symbols showing services at the next exit. Service signs are square or rectangular, blue with white letters or symbols, and show services at the next exit. Examples include hospitals, telephones, food, gas, diesel, and lodging. Highway guide signs are green with white letters; tourist directional signs may be blue or brown with white lettering. Manual wording for this rule: The following signs are examples of service signs. The signs are square or rectangular, are blue with white letters or symbols, and show the location of various services located at the next exit.

12. 12. You plan to exit a Pennsylvania highway. When should you begin slowing down?

    1. Only after you have moved into the exit lane
    2. As soon as the exit sign first appears, while still in through lanes
    3. Never, because exit ramps need highway speed
    4. Before changing lanes, to warn through traffic
    Show answer

    Only after you have moved into the exit lane. Exit speed belongs on the ramp, not in lanes that continue past it. Get into the proper lane for exiting well in advance and do not slow down until after you have moved into the exit lane, so through traffic keeps its pace. Braking at the first sign, holding highway speed onto the ramp, and pre braking before the lane change each misplace the slowdown. Move over early, let the exit lane receive you, and then shed speed for the ramp curve.

    Study this in the handbook: Signaling, turning, U-turns and passing

13. 13. Exit 95 and Exit 20 stand on the same Pennsylvania interstate. How far apart are they?

    1. 20 miles
    2. 75 miles
    3. 50 miles
    4. 115 miles
    Show answer

    75 miles. Exit numbers correspond with mile markers, allowing drivers to calculate distances between exits. Exit 95 and Exit 20 are 75 miles apart because 95 minus 20 equals 75. Cited handbook wording: Exit numbers correspond with the mile markers. This change allows motorists to quickly calculate distances between exits, e.g., the distance between Exit 95 and Exit 20 is 75 miles. That wording points to "75 miles."

    Study this in the handbook: Pavement markings and lane use signs

14. 14. How much nightly sleep puts a Pennsylvania teen driver at increased crash risk when it falls short?

    1. Less than eight hours a night
    2. Less than ten hours a night
    3. Less than six hours a night only on school nights
    4. Any amount, if the teen feels alert in the morning
    Show answer

    Less than eight hours a night. Teens who sleep less than eight hours a night are at increased risk for vehicle crashes. Fatigue slows reactions and impairs judgment and vision. A tired driver may fall asleep without knowing it; the manual says the best response to feeling tired while driving is to stop driving. Controlling manual language: Seconds is enough to kill you. Teens who sleep less than eight (8) hours a night are at increased risk for vehicle crashes. The best thing to do if you begin to feel tired while driving is to stop driving.

    Study this in the handbook: Space cushion, following distance and scanning

15. 15. You realize you are sitting in a lane controlled by a turn arrow sign with the word ONLY, but you wanted to go straight. What must you do at the intersection?

    1. Continue straight carefully, since intent matters more than the sign
    2. Make the turn anyway; you may travel only in the direction the arrow points, even though you entered the lane in error
    3. Stop in the lane and wait for an officer to wave you through
    4. Change lanes inside the intersection when a gap opens
    Show answer

    Make the turn anyway; you may travel only in the direction the arrow points, even though you entered the lane in error. If a lane is controlled by a turn arrow and the word ONLY, you must make that turn when you reach the intersection. You may travel only in the direction the arrow points, even if you entered the lane by mistake. Manual wording for this rule: Arrow and the word “ONLY,” when you reach the intersection, you must make the turn. You may travel only in the direction the arrow points, even if you are in the turn-only lane in error.

    Study this in the handbook: Pavement markings and lane use signs

16. 16. How far in advance may a Pennsylvania driver under 18 schedule the Road Test?

    1. Up to six months in advance, and young drivers are encouraged to schedule as soon as possible
    2. Only after the six-month waiting period ends
    3. Up to 30 days in advance
    4. Only on the day the learner's permit is issued
    Show answer

    Up to six months in advance, and young drivers are encouraged to schedule as soon as possible. Drivers under 18 may schedule their skills test up to six months in advance. The manual encourages scheduling as soon as possible. When the learner’s permit is issued, PennDOT recommends scheduling a Road Test date that is not before the eligibility date printed on the permit. Manual wording for this rule: ROAD TEST If you are under the age of 18, we allow our young drivers to schedule their skills test up to six (6) months in.

    Study this in the handbook: Learner's permit, knowledge test and road test

17. 17. During an emergency situation in Pennsylvania, whose directions must all drivers obey?

    1. Only the first police officer on the scene
    2. Only a Pennsylvania State Police trooper
    3. Any uniformed police officer, sheriff, constable, or properly attired person, including fire police
    4. The driver of the emergency vehicle only
    Show answer

    Any uniformed police officer, sheriff, constable, or properly attired person, including fire police. During an emergency, all drivers must obey any uniformed police officer, sheriff, constable or properly attired person, including fire police. The duty is not limited to the first officer or a state trooper. Cited handbook wording: During an emergency situation, all drivers must obey the direction of any uniformed police officer, sheriff, constable or any properly attired person, including fire police. That wording points to "Any uniformed police officer, sheriff, constable, or properly attired person, including fire police."

    Study this in the handbook: School buses, emergency vehicles and the Move Over law

18. 18. As you enter a center turn lane, how fully should your vehicle move into it?

    1. Keep the rear of the vehicle slightly in the travel lane so others notice you
    2. Enter it completely; do not leave the back end of your vehicle sticking into the normal travel lane, blocking traffic
    3. Stop halfway in until oncoming traffic clears
    4. Angle the vehicle diagonally across both lanes
    Show answer

    Enter it completely; do not leave the back end of your vehicle sticking into the normal travel lane, blocking traffic. Enter the center turn lane completely. Do not leave the back of your vehicle sticking into the normal travel lane and blocking traffic. Turn only when it is safe, watching for vehicles coming toward you in the same lane and ensuring a large enough gap across oncoming traffic. Cited handbook wording: When you enter the center turn lane, enter it completely. Do not leave the back end of your vehicle sticking into the normal travel lane, blocking traffic.

    Study this in the handbook: Pavement markings and lane use signs

19. 19. During what part of a rainstorm can pavements become very slippery as oil rises from the asphalt?

    1. Only after an hour of steady rain
    2. Only when rain turns to snow
    3. After the storm ends and roads begin drying
    4. In the first 10 to 15 minutes of a rain storm
    Show answer

    In the first 10 to 15 minutes of a rain storm. Pavements can become very slippery in the first 10 to 15 minutes of a rainstorm as rain brings oil in the asphalt to the surface. Hot weather makes this worse because heat and water bring up more oil. In cold, wet weather, shaded sections freeze more quickly and dry last. Reduce speed when road conditions are poor. The cited manual passage: Pavements can become very slippery in the first 10 to 15 minutes of a rain storm.

    Study this in the handbook: Speed, night driving and bad weather

20. 20. A driver has been drinking and wants to sober up quickly before driving. What works?

    1. Drinking coffee
    2. Taking a cold shower
    3. Caffeinated drinks plus fresh air
    4. Only time
    Show answer

    Only time. Only time will sober you up. The manual says coffee, other caffeinated beverages and cold showers cannot reduce blood alcohol concentration. A person of average weight needs at least one hour to process the alcohol in each drink. Even small amounts impair driving skills, and the only safe amount to drink before driving is zero. Cited handbook wording: Only time will “sober you up.” You cannot reduce your blood alcohol concentration level by drinking coffee or other caffeinated beverages, or by taking a cold shower.

    Study this in the handbook: DUI, chemical tests and zero tolerance