The entrance ramp is too short to allow acceleration to expressway speed. What is the safest way to enter?
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A.
Match the speed of the closest expressway vehicle from the shoulder
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B.
Drive on the paved shoulder until traffic thins out
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C.
Stop and wait for a large space in traffic, then accelerate quickly Correct
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D.
Force your way in with your hazard lights on to warn other drivers
The answer is "Stop and wait for a large space in traffic, then accelerate quickly"
The manual gives this method as the safest when the entrance lane is too short for full acceleration. Choice D, forcing in with hazards, comes from treating hazard lights as permission to push through moving traffic; on a ramp they are only a warning device, and expressway drivers are not required to yield to them.
The traps in the wrong answers
A. Match the speed of the closest expressway vehicle from the shoulder
The manual's method is to time the entry from a full stop, not to chase one vehicle from the shoulder. This answer confuses matching the flow with matching a single vehicle, because both start with a glance over the left shoulder.
B. Drive on the paved shoulder until traffic thins out
The shoulder is not an acceleration lane; the manual gives it no role in merging. This answer extends the shoulder's use as an emergency lane to cover a short ramp, which the manual does not sanction.
D. Force your way in with your hazard lights on to warn other drivers
Hazard lights warn other drivers of a slow or stopped vehicle; they do not clear a path through moving traffic. This answer treats hazard lights as permission to push through moving traffic rather than the warning device the vehicle code defines.
This question tests your knowledge of Lane Changes & Merging in New York. Source: New York State Driver's Manual, "Expressway Driving," p.62..
Related New York questions
- Unless a stop or yield sign or signal controls the entrance ramp, how should you use the ramp to enter an expressway? →
- How far before an expressway exit ramp must you signal your intention to exit? →
- What does the manual recommend to prevent a last-minute lane change before your expressway exit? →
- You have passed a large truck on the left. When may you return to the lane in front of it? →
- Before changing lanes on the expressway, what must you do in addition to signaling? →
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