Driver's License Test Prep
US Road Signs Road Markings

A series of wide white bars is painted across the road, parallel to the direction of traffic, like piano keys. What does this marking indicate?

Eight wide white vertical bars of equal size and spacing running across dark pavement from top to bottom.
  1. A.
    A high-visibility pedestrian crosswalk. Correct
  2. B.
    A stop line telling drivers where to halt at the intersection.
  3. C.
    A yield line telling drivers to slow and give way.
  4. D.
    A rumble strip designed to alert drowsy drivers.
The Why

The answer is "A high-visibility pedestrian crosswalk."

A series of wide white bars painted across the road, parallel to the direction of traffic, marks a continental crosswalk, a high-visibility pedestrian crossing. Drivers must yield to pedestrians within it, must not stop on or block the bars, and must not pass another vehicle stopped for someone in the crossing. The stop-line answer comes from confusing these parallel bars with the single perpendicular white line at an intersection that tells drivers where to halt; the two markings run in different directions and carry different meanings.

Why the others miss

The traps in the wrong answers

B. A stop line telling drivers where to halt at the intersection.

A stop line is a single solid white line painted across the lane, perpendicular to the direction of travel, telling drivers where to halt at an intersection. A continental crosswalk is a series of wide bars running with the flow of traffic, not one line across it. Defaults to 'stop here' at any bold white paint near an intersection, a habit built on the far more common single-bar stop line drivers encounter daily.

C. A yield line telling drivers to slow and give way.

A yield line is a row of solid white triangles pointing at the approaching driver, sometimes called shark's teeth. Wide parallel bars mark a pedestrian crossing, not a yield point. Confuses the wide-bar continental crosswalk with the triangular shark's-teeth pattern that actually marks a yield line.

D. A rumble strip designed to alert drowsy drivers.

Rumble strips are raised or grooved surfaces built into the pavement to vibrate a vehicle as a warning, not painted lane markings. A continental crosswalk is flat paint on the road, not a tactile surface. Confuses a painted road marking with a raised or grooved pavement surface designed to alert a distracted or drowsy driver.

The Rule

This question tests your knowledge of Road Markings on the roads of every US state . Source: Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices, marking 3B.18 (Continental Crosswalk)..

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