A truck ahead of you is preparing to back into a loading area and is temporarily blocking the roadway. What does the manual tell you to do?
-
A.
Sound your horn until the truck driver clears a path for you.
-
B.
Steer onto the sidewalk to get around the front of the truck.
-
C.
Cross behind the truck quickly while the driver is still positioning.
-
D.
Wait for the truck to complete the maneuver rather than passing behind it. Correct
The answer is "Wait for the truck to complete the maneuver rather than passing behind it."
Wait the few seconds for the truck to complete its backing maneuver rather than passing behind it, because slipping across places you inside the rear No-Zone where the driver cannot see you. Choice C is the trap: drivers read the truck driver's visible focus on positioning as a couple-second window to slip past, borrowing a parking-lot reflex where a beat of the other driver's inattention is treated as permission to cross.
The traps in the wrong answers
A. Sound your horn until the truck driver clears a path for you.
The manual tells you to wait for the truck to complete its maneuver, not to prompt the driver with your horn. This answer treats the horn as a general 'move it along' signal for any blocked lane, a reflex carried over from stop-and-go city driving where a beep often clears an inattentive car.
B. Steer onto the sidewalk to get around the front of the truck.
Driving on the sidewalk is not permitted and endangers any pedestrians there. This answer extends the 'drive around a stalled vehicle' workaround to a truck that is only temporarily blocking, forgetting the sidewalk is never a legal detour.
C. Cross behind the truck quickly while the driver is still positioning.
Slipping through the rear blind spot is exactly the No-Zone situation the manual warns against. This answer reads the truck driver's focus on positioning as a couple-second window of inattention, borrowing a parking-lot squeeze-past habit where a mistake means a scraped bumper rather than being run over.
This question tests your knowledge of Sharing the Road in Pennsylvania. Source: Pennsylvania Driver Manual, "Backing Crashes," p.58..
Related Pennsylvania questions
- According to the manual, why should you avoid stopping quickly right after passing a bicyclist? →
- You are driving behind a school bus. It stops with its red lights flashing and its stop arm extended. How far must you stop from the bus? →
- The manual gives one exception to stopping for a school bus with red lights flashing and its stop arm extended. When does the exception apply? →
- You are following a truck at night. What does the manual tell you to do with your headlights? →
- A motorcycle ahead of you at an intersection has its turn signal flashing. What does the manual tell you to do? →
You just took one Pennsylvania question apart. The book does it for the whole test.
The Pennsylvania book unlocks a free companion: an adaptive study plan, progress synced across your devices, a denser laminate cheat sheet, and a test-day walkthrough. Verify your copy once, usually in seconds; there's nothing extra to buy.
$18.99 paperback, free companion included.