Driver's License Test Prep
California Practice Speed Limits

What is the speed limit within 500 feet of a school when children are outside or crossing the street, unless otherwise posted?

  1. A.
    15 mph
  2. B.
    25 mph Correct
  3. C.
    35 mph
The Why

The answer is "25 mph"

Within 500 feet of a school while children are outside or crossing, the speed limit is 25 mph unless a lower school-zone limit is posted. In A, the 15 mph figure marks the low end a school zone may post on a sign, and a driver takes that floor for the default rather than the minimum a posted sign must actually show.

Why the others miss

The traps in the wrong answers

A. 15 mph

The manual notes some school zones may post limits as low as 15 mph, but that is the low end of what a school zone may post, not the default within 500 feet of a school. This answer reads the sentence about 15 mph school-zone postings as the school-zone rule itself, rather than as the floor a sign must show before it applies.

C. 35 mph

A 35 mph limit posted elsewhere on the same road does not override the 25 mph school-zone rule while children are outside or crossing. This answer carries the speed posted on the road running past the school as the school-zone limit instead of dropping to 25 mph when children are present.

The Rule

This question tests your knowledge of Speed Limits in California. Source: California Driver Manual, "Around Children," p.50..

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