Louisiana OMV Permit Practice Test 34
- Questions40
- Correct to pass32
- Passing score80%
- Minimum age15 years
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1. Traffic in your lane is backed up and the paved shoulder looks clear. May you drive along it to get past?
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Answer C: No, the shoulder is not a travel lane
Passing must be done within the roadway; driving on the shoulder to get around traffic is prohibited and surprises anyone entering from the right.
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2. You have passed a large truck and want to move back into its lane. What should you see first?
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Answer B: Both of its headlights in your rear-view mirror
Seeing both headlights in your mirror means you are far enough ahead to be out of the truck's front no-zone before you move over.
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3. You are in the right-hand of two left-turn lanes and the vehicle beside you starts to drift toward your lane during the turn. What should you do?
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Answer B: Slow slightly, keep to your own lane and give the other vehicle room
Drivers commonly drift wide in dual turn lanes, so hold your own line, ease off and leave space rather than racing or crowding the other vehicle.
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4. A yellow diamond shows the two edges of the road pinching toward each other. What does it mean?
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Answer B: The pavement gets narrower but the lanes continue
The road narrows sign warns that the traveled way becomes tighter, leaving less room beside passing vehicles even though no lane is dropped.
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5. You are driving at night through heavy falling snow. Which headlight setting works better and why?
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Answer C: Low beams, because high beams bounce off the falling flakes back at you
Falling snow reflects light the way fog does, so high beams build a white wall of glare while low beams still give a usable view.
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6. You are descending a long steep grade with a loaded truck close behind you. What should you do?
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Answer A: Hold a steady speed and let it pass when it can
Gravity pushes a loaded truck downhill and it cannot slow quickly, so give it a predictable speed and room to get by rather than braking in front of it.
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7. A white regulatory sign near a state line reads BUCKLE UP IT IS THE LAW. What is it doing?
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Answer A: Reminding occupants that belt use is required
The safety belt sign restates a law that already applies, and it is usually placed where drivers enter a state or a long rural stretch.
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8. What detail must appear on the insurance card that Louisiana law requires you to keep in the vehicle?
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Answer A: The NAIC number of the insurance company
Louisiana proof of insurance must show the company, policy number, effective dates, vehicle, insured party and the NAIC number that shows the insurer is authorized in the state.
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9. A single solid white line separates two lanes running in the same direction. What is it telling drivers?
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Answer A: Changing lanes there is discouraged
A solid white lane line discourages lane changing, typically where merging or weaving would create a hazard.
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10. What vision standard must a Louisiana learner's permit applicant meet?
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Answer B: 20/40 in at least one eye
The Louisiana Office of Motor Vehicles requires a vision screening result of 20/40 in at least one eye before issuing a learner's permit.
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11. You are turning right on a red light where that is permitted. What does the law require first?
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Answer B: A full stop, then yielding to traffic and pedestrians
A right turn on red is allowed only after stopping completely and giving way to everyone who has the green, including people in the crosswalk.
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12. A yellow pennant, an isosceles triangle with its long axis horizontal, is reserved for which message?
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Answer D: No passing zone
The pennant shape is used only for the no passing zone sign, which marks the point where overtaking is no longer allowed.
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13. Which action becomes clearly more risky beyond this sign?
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Answer A: Using the left side of the roadway to overtake
With vehicles coming the other way on the same pavement, overtaking on the left needs enough clear road to pull out, pass and return, which is often not available.
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14. Where is a road work ahead sign placed?
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Answer B: In advance of the work space or detour, so drivers are warned before reaching it
Advance warning signs are placed upstream of the work space or detour so that drivers have time to slow down and change lanes before reaching the activity.
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15. You are driving forward into a perpendicular space with a large pickup parked on the right of it. How should you take it?
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Answer D: Stay wide, turn in late and keep clear of the pickup
Starting the turn later keeps the rear of your car away from the vehicle beside the space, which is exactly what a tight early turn clips.
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16. Why is heavy braking a poor idea while two wheels are still on a soft shoulder?
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Answer B: The two sides have different grip, so the vehicle can pull sharply
With one pair of wheels on pavement and the other on loose material, hard braking slows one side more than the other and swings the vehicle around.
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17. What is the most common cause of rear-end collisions?
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Answer C: Following too closely to stop in time
A driver who leaves too little space has no room to perceive, react and brake when the vehicle ahead slows, which is why space management prevents rear-end crashes.
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18. Why does even a small reduction in speed matter so much where people are walking?
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Answer D: Because a pedestrian struck at a lower speed is far more likely to survive
The chance that a pedestrian survives falls steeply as impact speed rises, so a few miles per hour can decide the outcome.
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19. You are waiting to enter a two-lane roundabout and traffic is circulating in both lanes. What must you do?
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Answer A: Yield to traffic in both circulating lanes before you enter
Every entry to a roundabout is a yield point, and at a two-lane roundabout that means giving way to vehicles in either circulating lane.
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20. You are turning left at an intersection just beyond the crest of a hill. What is the added risk?
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Answer B: Oncoming vehicles appear with very little warning and close quickly
A crest hides approaching traffic until it is close, so the gap you thought was empty can fill in the time the turn takes.
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21. A pedestrian is waiting to cross ahead of you and you have slowed down. What helps most?
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Answer D: Making eye contact, so that you both know you have seen each other
Eye contact confirms that you have seen each other; waving someone across can send them into the path of another vehicle.
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22. On an unlit road, about how far ahead do high beams normally let you see?
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Answer D: About 350 to 500 feet ahead of the vehicle
High beams light roughly 350 to 500 feet of road and low beams far less, which is why night speeds have to be chosen around the beam, not the limit.
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23. A regulatory sign reads TURN ON HEADLIGHTS NEXT 15 MILES. What does it require?
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Answer C: Low beam headlights on for that stretch, day or night
Such a section is signed where a road is hard to see along, and the requirement is to run headlights, not just daytime running lamps, through the whole stretch even in bright daylight.
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24. You are approaching a highway-rail grade crossing marked only with a crossbuck sign. What does that sign require?
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Answer A: Yield to any approaching train and cross only when the tracks are clear
The crossbuck is a regulatory yield sign, and a train can never stop or steer around a vehicle, so the driver must always give way.
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25. Besides buying a liability policy, how may a Louisiana vehicle owner satisfy the compulsory security requirement?
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Answer D: By posting a liability bond, depositing cash or securities, or self-insuring
Louisiana accepts an automobile liability policy, a motor vehicle liability bond, a cash or securities deposit with the state treasurer, or a certificate of self-insurance.
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26. What suspension does Louisiana impose for a first conviction of illegally passing a school bus that is stopped to load or unload children?
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Answer C: Thirty days
Louisiana suspends for 30 days on a first conviction, 60 days on a second and one year on a third for this offense.
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27. Smoke from a nearby fire is drifting across the highway. What should you do?
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Answer C: Slow down, use low beams, and close the windows and vents
Smoke cuts visibility like fog and can make your eyes water. Low beams, a much lower speed and closed vents protect both your view and the air in the car.
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28. You are on an entrance ramp joining a busy freeway. What should you do with your speed in the acceleration lane?
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Answer D: Build it up to about the speed of the traffic you are joining
Merging works when your speed matches the traffic stream, because a large speed difference forces the drivers already on the freeway to brake or swerve.
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29. Enhanced reference location markers differ from ordinary mileposts in that they
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Answer B: carry the route number and a mileage figure to the tenth of a mile
An enhanced reference location marker adds the route designation and carries the mileage to a tenth, so the point named is far more precise than a plain milepost.
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30. While you wait for the ambulance at a crash, what is the most useful help you can give?
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Answer C: Keep the person still and warm, and press down firmly on any heavy bleeding
Keeping an injured person still and warm and controlling bleeding are among the few things a bystander can safely do.
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31. The car ahead drifts across the lane line and back again several times. What should you do?
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Answer C: Assume that the driver is distracted or impaired, and keep well back
Drifting is a classic sign of a distracted, drowsy or impaired driver, and distance is your protection from all three.
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32. Why should the washer reservoir hold proper washer fluid rather than plain water in winter?
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Answer D: Water freezes and it leaves you with no way at all to clean the glass
Washer fluid contains antifreeze, so it still works in the cold, whereas water freezes in the reservoir and the lines.
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33. What fine does Louisiana law set for a traffic violation committed on a stretch of road designated as a highway safety corridor?
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Answer A: Not less than 750 dollars nor more than 1,000 dollars, or up to 30 days
A violation committed on a designated highway safety corridor carries a fine of 750 to 1,000 dollars and may bring imprisonment of up to 30 days.
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34. What should you do with the key and your belongings when you leave the vehicle in a public lot?
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Answer D: Take the key with you, lock up and put valuables out of sight
Most vehicle thefts are opportunistic: a key left behind or a bag in plain view is the invitation.
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35. You see a shield for a three-digit Interstate whose first digit is even. What does that tell you about the route?
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Answer C: It loops around a city and rejoins its parent route
A three-digit Interstate beginning with an even digit is a loop or beltway that connects back to the main route at both ends, while an odd first digit marks a spur.
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36. On dry pavement in good weather, what is the smallest following gap you should keep?
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Answer A: About three seconds behind the vehicle ahead
Three seconds is the accepted minimum on dry roads in good visibility, and the gap should be longer in poor conditions.
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37. Which family of signs normally uses a rectangle that is wider than it is tall?
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Answer B: Guide signs, which name routes and destinations
Guide signs are laid out as horizontal rectangles because they have to carry route numbers, place names and distances side by side.
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38. Why is a wet road at night harder to read than the same road in daylight?
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Answer A: The wet surface reflects light away and swallows the lane markings
A film of water sends your headlight beam onward instead of back to you, so lines, edges and people in dark clothing almost disappear.
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39. A yellow sign ahead of an underpass reads LOW CLEARANCE 12 FT 6 IN. What does the figure tell you?
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Answer B: The greatest height that can pass beneath the structure
The figure is the actual clearance available, so a vehicle taller than that must leave the road and take a marked alternative route.
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40. A preferential lane sign reads HOV 2+ and lists the hours it applies. During those hours, which vehicles may use the lane?
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Answer A: Vehicles carrying at least two people, counting the driver
The number on an HOV sign is the minimum number of occupants, driver included, that a vehicle must carry to use the lane while the restriction is in effect.