You cannot maintain at least 8 feet of clear space on either side of your vehicle in traffic. What does the manual tell you to do?
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A.
Sound your horn to warn the drivers who are boxing you in.
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B.
Change lanes so you have at least 8 feet on your left side.
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C.
Slow to half the posted speed limit until a side clears up.
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D.
Allow more space to the front by increasing your following distance. Correct
The answer is "Allow more space to the front by increasing your following distance."
When you cannot keep at least eight feet of side clearance to use as an escape path, the manual tells you to add space in front by lengthening your following distance, so you buy time to react instead of room to swerve. Choice B is the trap for drivers who read "escape path" as a cue to change lanes; the manual's fix for a closed side is more front space in the lane you already occupy, not a mandatory lane change.
The traps in the wrong answers
A. Sound your horn to warn the drivers who are boxing you in.
The manual does not tell you to honk when side space closes; it tells you to add room in front. This answer confuses the horn's warning role with a way to physically push nearby drivers back and reopen an escape lane.
B. Change lanes so you have at least 8 feet on your left side.
The manual solves the closed-side problem with more front space, not a lane change. This answer reads 'escape path' as a mandate to change lanes, when the manual's remedy is added following distance in the lane you already occupy.
C. Slow to half the posted speed limit until a side clears up.
The manual does not tie a half-speed cut to a lack of side clearance. This answer borrows the 'cut speed in half' rule of thumb from slick-pavement driver-education and misapplies it to a side-space shortfall.
This question tests your knowledge of Defensive Driving in Pennsylvania. Source: Pennsylvania Driver Manual, "Keep a Space Cushion to the Sides," p.36..
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