Maine BMV Motorcycle Practice Test 32
- Questions25
- Correct to pass20
- Passing score80%
- Minimum age16 years
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1. Why does full riding gear matter on a short trip around the neighborhood?
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Answer D: Pavement takes skin off at 25 miles an hour just as it does at 55
Serious injuries happen at ordinary street speeds and close to home, so gear that is worth wearing on a long trip is worth wearing on a short one.
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2. A speed limit sign carries a second panel reading TRUCKS 55. What does that panel do?
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Answer B: It sets a lower legal limit for trucks
A truck speed limit panel is regulatory, so trucks are bound by the lower figure while other traffic keeps to the main limit.
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3. The traffic signal is green, but the crossing lights on the tracks inside the intersection begin to flash. What must you do?
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Answer C: Stop clear of the tracks and wait, even though the signal is green
Active crossing warning devices outrank the green indication, so you stop short of the rails and wait until the warning stops.
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4. How do strong emotions affect driving?
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Answer B: They narrow your attention and make risky decisions more likely
Anger, worry and excitement all take attention away from the driving task and push drivers toward decisions they would not normally make.
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5. Some states allow a left turn against a red light. Which movement is it?
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Answer A: A left turn from a one-way street onto another one-way street
The movement generally allowed on red is one-way to one-way, because the turn does not cross any lane of oncoming traffic; a few states also extend it to a two-way street turning onto a one-way street.
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6. You are joining a highway from a short ramp that has no acceleration lane. What should you do?
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Answer A: Stop or slow at the end of the ramp and wait for a safe gap
Without an acceleration lane there is no room to match speed, so you must yield at the end of the ramp and enter only when a gap allows it.
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7. You must slow suddenly on a highway and a vehicle is following close behind you. What helps prevent a rear-end collision?
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Answer D: Tapping the brake pedal early so your brake lights flash a warning
Early brake light flashes give the driver behind more time to react, and slowing gradually instead of suddenly reduces the chance of being struck.
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8. What is a designated driver?
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Answer A: Someone who agrees to drink nothing at all
A designated driver drinks no alcohol whatsoever, because any amount begins to affect judgment and the whole point is a sober driver.
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9. You want to move into the right lane just as an entrance ramp joins the highway at that point. What is the better choice?
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Answer B: Wait until you are past the merge area so you do not squeeze the entering traffic
The merge area is where ramp traffic has to find a gap, so adding a lane change of your own into the same space creates a conflict.
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10. A yellow diamond in which one line joins another at an angle warns that
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Answer B: traffic from another roadway will merge into the driver's lane ahead
The merge sign warns that another traffic stream will join the same lane ahead, so drivers on both roadways must adjust speed and spacing.
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11. A crossing guard steps into the roadway ahead of this sign with one hand raised. What must the driver do?
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Answer B: Stop and stay stopped until the guard waves traffic on
An adult guard is controlling traffic at that crossing, so the instruction given by that person governs and the driver waits to be released.
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12. The road ahead is broken up with potholes and rough patches. What should you do?
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Answer C: Slow down, since a hole hit at speed can wreck a tire or wheel
A lower speed cuts the impact on tires, wheels and suspension and gives you time to choose a line through the rough surface.
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13. What should a rider remember about convex mirrors?
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Answer B: They show a wider view, but vehicles look farther away and slower than they are
The curved glass fits more of the scene into the mirror, and the price of that extra width is a distorted sense of distance and closing speed.
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14. Why is a U-turn on a one-way street a problem?
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Answer A: You would end up facing the wrong way against all the traffic
Every lane of a one-way street runs the same way, so turning around leaves you driving head-on against all of the traffic.
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15. Where is this sign normally installed?
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Answer A: At an island or other obstruction in the roadway, to show which side traffic must take
It is placed at a divider, island or fixed obstruction so that drivers approaching it know without hesitating which side to pass on.
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16. What does a Maine motorcycle learner's permit not allow the holder to do?
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Answer A: Carry a passenger
Maine issues the motorcycle learner's permit from age 16 and states plainly that it does not allow the holder to carry anyone else on the machine.
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17. A piece of farm machinery ahead of you is wider than its own lane. What should you do?
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Answer C: Hold back until you can see far enough to pass safely
Wide equipment leaves no gap inside the lane and may use part of the other side, so a pass needs a long clear view of the road ahead.
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18. Where do Maine's statutory rates of speed not apply?
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Answer C: At an authorized racing event and on private land used with the owner's authorization
Maine's rates of speed do not apply to an authorized racing event or to operation on private land with the authorization of the owner.
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19. You are turning left out of a driveway onto a busy two-way street. What must you do?
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Answer D: Wait for a gap in both directions before you start to move
The turn crosses one direction of traffic and joins the other, so you need a gap in both before leaving the driveway rather than stopping across a lane.
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20. A wide solid white line separates the through lanes from an exit lane. What does it tell drivers?
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Answer B: The choice of lane should already have been made
A channelizing line marks where the paths separate and crossing it is discouraged or prohibited, so the lane change has to happen upstream.
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21. You are overtaking a large tractor trailer on the highway. What should you expect as you ride alongside and then past it?
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Answer D: Changing pushes and pulls as you pass the front, the side and the rear
The air around a large truck moves in different directions along its length, so expect the buffeting to change as you go by. Keep a firm but relaxed grip and a steady throttle.
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22. Why should riders avoid the center strip of the lane, especially where traffic stops often?
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Answer A: Because it collects oil and grease dripped from other vehicles
Drippings from other vehicles build up in the center of the lane, and the buildup is heaviest at busy intersections and toll booths where traffic sits waiting.
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23. After an hour on a hot highway your tire pressure reads higher than it did in the morning. What should you do?
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Answer D: Nothing, because pressure rises when tires heat up
Air expands as the tire warms, so a hot reading is normally above the cold setting. Bleeding air off would leave the tire underinflated once it cooled.
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24. Your vehicle is burning at the roadside. How far away should everyone keep?
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Answer D: At least a hundred feet away from the vehicle and upwind, out of the drifting smoke
Burning vehicles give off toxic smoke and parts such as tires and struts can burst, so keep a long distance and stay upwind.
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25. How should a group merge onto a busy highway from an entrance ramp?
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Answer D: One rider at a time into gaps in traffic, re-forming once all are on
Each rider needs a gap and enough speed of their own, so the group merges individually and only takes up the staggered formation again afterward.