You approach a vehicle stopped in the road ahead of you. Before you pass it, what does the manual tell you to do?
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A.
Slow down and don't pass until sure no pedestrians are crossing in front of it. Correct
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B.
Sound your horn and steer wide around the stopped vehicle.
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C.
Treat the vehicle's four-way flashers as your cue to pass.
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D.
Match the speed of nearby lanes and continue past the vehicle.
The answer is "Slow down and don't pass until sure no pedestrians are crossing in front of it."
The manual is specific: a stopped vehicle hides the road in front of it, so slow down and hold back until you have confirmed no pedestrian is stepping across in front of it. Horns, flashers, and speed-matching do nothing to address that hidden pedestrian. B leans on the alert-others horn habit, ignoring that a pedestrian hidden by the stopped car cannot see or react to it in time.
The traps in the wrong answers
B. Sound your horn and steer wide around the stopped vehicle.
The horn is not a substitute for confirming the path in front of the stopped vehicle is clear. This answer falls back on the generic alert-others horn habit, ignoring that a pedestrian hidden by the stopped car cannot see or react to you at all.
C. Treat the vehicle's four-way flashers as your cue to pass.
Flashers signal that the vehicle is stopped, not that its front is clear of pedestrians. This answer reads hazard flashers as a safe-to-pass invitation, when they only warn that the vehicle is disabled or stopped.
D. Match the speed of nearby lanes and continue past the vehicle.
Matching lane speed does not address the pedestrian who may be stepping out from in front of the stopped car. This answer applies the flow-of-traffic habit from open highway driving to a scenario the manual singles out for extra caution.
This question tests your knowledge of Sharing the Road in Pennsylvania. Source: Pennsylvania Driver Manual, "Sharing the Road With Pedestrians, Bicyclists, and Motorcyclists and Moped Drivers - Pedestrians," p.55..
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