The three-lane passing rule has one exception. What is it?
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A.
When emergency vehicles are approaching from behind.
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B.
When the vehicle in the center lane is making a left turn. Correct
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C.
When the road has just been repaved and unmarked.
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D.
When the driver behind you is signaling to pass.
The answer is "When the vehicle in the center lane is making a left turn."
On a three-lane highway you must not pass except in the center lane, and only where that lane is marked for passing in your direction. The manual's one exception is a vehicle in the center lane preparing a left turn, which lets traffic behind maneuver around it. Choice D tempts drivers who remember the horn-and-move-right rule for being passed and treat that courtesy duty as a standing permission to pass outside the center lane.
The traps in the wrong answers
A. When emergency vehicles are approaching from behind.
The three-lane exception concerns a turning vehicle ahead, not emergency traffic. This answer applies the general duty to yield to emergency vehicles as if it rewrote where passing is legal on a three-lane road.
C. When the road has just been repaved and unmarked.
Repaving does not create a passing exception; markings still govern once repainted. This answer assumes missing lane paint suspends the rule the paint enforced, rather than treating unmarked lanes as no permission to pass.
D. When the driver behind you is signaling to pass.
The three-lane exception is about the vehicle ahead in the center lane, not a driver behind wanting past you. This answer carries over the horn-and-move-right courtesy a passed driver owes and treats it as a standing permission to pass anywhere themselves.
This question tests your knowledge of Road Markings in North Carolina. Source: North Carolina Driver Handbook, "Chapter 4 - Your Driving, Passing," p.55..
Related North Carolina questions
- A solid yellow line in your lane tells you what? →
- Between opposing lanes, a double-solid yellow line means what about passing? →
- On a three-lane highway, where does the manual say you may pass? →
- A solid yellow line runs along your side of the lane divider. May you cross it to pass the vehicle ahead? →
- What should you observe to choose the appropriate lane before entering a multi-lane roundabout? →
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