You are driving on a two-lane road and plan to pass a bicyclist riding in your lane. What does the manual call the safest way to make the pass?
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A.
Change into the next lane before going by. Correct
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B.
Pass closely at low speed in the same lane.
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C.
Wait until the bicyclist stops to let you by.
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D.
Straddle the center line while passing.
The answer is "Change into the next lane before going by."
The manual says the safest way to pass a bicyclist is to change lanes, and a driver may pass only when there is abundant clearance and no oncoming traffic is in the opposing lane. Drivers who carry over the two-feet-to-the-left rule the manual gives for passing a moped and apply it to a bicycle pick B instead of making the full lane change.
The traps in the wrong answers
B. Pass closely at low speed in the same lane.
Staying in the same lane is not the lane change the manual identifies as safest and does not give the abundant clearance the manual requires. Borrows the two-feet-to-the-left rule the manual gives for passing a moped and applies it to a bicycle.
C. Wait until the bicyclist stops to let you by.
The manual places the responsibility for a safe pass on the driver, who must follow vehicle passing laws, not on the cyclist yielding the lane. Treats the bicyclist like a pedestrian expected to step aside at an intersection, rather than a vehicle the driver passes.
D. Straddle the center line while passing.
Straddling the center line is not the full lane change the manual identifies as safest; any pass still requires abundant clearance and no oncoming traffic in the opposing lane. Reaches for the habit drivers use to edge around a narrow shoulder obstacle, instead of moving fully into the next lane.
This question tests your knowledge of Passing in North Carolina. Source: North Carolina Driver Handbook, "Chapter 6, Sharing the Road: Pass with Care," p.90..
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