As temperatures drop toward freezing, which stretches of road ice over first?
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A.
Right lanes of divided highways.
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B.
Shady spots, bridges, and overpasses. Correct
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C.
Uphill grades where speed is lower.
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D.
Straight, sunny stretches of highway.
The answer is "Shady spots, bridges, and overpasses."
Air flows under bridges and overpasses and shade blocks the sun off the pavement, so those spots freeze while the road around them still looks only wet. Drivers pick choice C because they associate uphill grades with traction trouble in general and treat that as a reason those grades would also freeze first, which the manual does not claim.
The traps in the wrong answers
A. Right lanes of divided highways.
Lane position has nothing to do with how fast pavement drops below freezing. This answer mixes a lane-position rule from another topic into a temperature question.
C. Uphill grades where speed is lower.
Uphill grades cause other traction problems but are not the surfaces the manual lists as first to freeze. This answer extends a general uphill traction-trouble association to a freezing-first claim the manual does not make.
D. Straight, sunny stretches of highway.
Sun on the pavement keeps it warmer, not cooler. This answer assumes any road surface cools evenly regardless of exposure to sunlight.
This question tests your knowledge of Adverse Conditions in North Carolina. Source: North Carolina Driver Handbook, "Chapter 4 - Snow and Ice," p.73..
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