Maine BMV Motorcycle Practice Test 36
- Questions25
- Correct to pass20
- Passing score80%
- Minimum age16 years
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1. You have just merged onto a freeway from an entrance ramp. What should you do next?
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Answer C: Settle into the right lane and build up speed before changing lanes
Crossing lanes while you are still below the speed of the traffic forces other drivers to brake, so the speed comes first and the lane change second.
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2. A yellow diamond showing a bicycle is posted on a rural road. What should a driver expect?
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Answer A: Bicyclists crossing or riding along the roadway there
The bicycle warning sign is used where a bikeway crosses the road or where riders are likely to be in the traffic lanes, so drivers should look carefully and pass wide.
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3. You notice at night that one of your headlights has burned out. What should you do?
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Answer B: Get it replaced promptly, because other drivers may take you for a motorcycle
A single light makes your vehicle look narrower and further away, so other drivers misjudge you, and one light is also illegal.
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4. A sign showing a walking figure carries a plaque below it with an arrow slanting down to the right. What does the plaque add?
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Answer B: The crossing is at that very spot
A downward-slanting arrow plaque marks the crossing itself, whereas an AHEAD or distance plaque would place it further along the road.
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5. What effect does low tire pressure have on a motorcycle?
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Answer C: It makes steering, braking and general handling worse
An underinflated tire changes shape under load, which makes the motorcycle steer heavily and respond unpredictably.
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6. You are stopped at a red light waiting to turn right where the turn is allowed. Besides traffic from the left, what must you check?
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Answer D: Both crosswalks, and anyone approaching along your right side
A right turn on red crosses the crosswalk in front of you and enters the one on the cross street, and cyclists often approach along your right.
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7. You are the second vehicle waiting to turn left on a green ball. Where should you wait?
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Answer A: Behind the stop line, until the first vehicle has actually turned
Only the lead vehicle should move into the intersection to wait; a second vehicle inside it is likely to be stranded there when the light changes.
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8. Your green left-turn arrow goes out and a steady green ball stays lit. What may you do?
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Answer A: Continue turning left, but only after yielding to oncoming traffic
When the arrow ends and a green ball remains, the turn changes from protected to permissive, so it is still allowed but oncoming traffic goes first.
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9. You have finished a distracting task and your eyes are back on the road. What is true?
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Answer A: Your full attention takes a while to come back
Studies of drivers show attention lags behind the eyes for many seconds after a phone or a screen task, so the danger continues after the task is over.
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10. When should a helmet be replaced?
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Answer B: After a crash, or if the shell is cracked or the straps are frayed
The energy absorbing liner is designed to crush once, so a helmet that has taken an impact or shows damage no longer offers full protection.
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11. 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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12. A reduced speed limit posted with this sign and a plaque giving hours is in force
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Answer C: during the hours shown on the plaque, or while the beacon is flashing
A school speed limit applies during the periods stated on the plaque or while the attached beacon flashes, and the regular limit governs outside those periods.
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13. You are making a legal U-turn at an intersection. Who has the right of way?
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Answer C: Everyone else, until your turn is complete
A U-turn crosses several paths at once, so you yield to oncoming vehicles, to crossing traffic and to pedestrians before starting it.
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14. Railroad tracks cross the road at a slight angle. What is normally the safest way to cross them?
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Answer B: Ride straight across while staying inside your own lane
Riding straight ahead within your lane is usually safe on tracks that cross the road, because swerving to square them up can carry you into another lane or into oncoming traffic.
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15. When should most of your braking for a turn be finished?
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Answer B: Before you begin to turn the wheel
Slow to the right speed before the turn begins; braking hard while turning uses up the grip the tires need for steering.
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16. Which of these is never a legal place to park?
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Answer C: In a crosswalk, on a sidewalk or within an intersection
Crosswalks, sidewalks and intersections must stay clear so that pedestrians can cross and drivers can see approaching traffic.
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17. What does it mean to scan the road while driving?
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Answer A: Moving your eyes constantly over the road, the sides and the mirrors
Scanning keeps information coming in from every direction, while a fixed stare leaves you blind to everything else.
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18. Your light turns green and a driver on the cross street enters against a red. What should you do?
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Answer D: Hold back and let that vehicle go through
Giving up a right of way you are entitled to is the only way to avoid a crash with a driver who has already failed to yield.
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19. Traffic is backed up on the far side of a railroad crossing. What should you do before driving onto the tracks?
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Answer D: Wait behind the tracks until there is room to clear them completely
Never enter a crossing until you are certain you can drive completely across without stopping, because a vehicle trapped on the tracks cannot get out of a train's way.
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20. You are driving through a long curve on a road with two lanes in your direction. What is correct?
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Answer A: Stay within your own lane all the way through, adjusting speed before you enter
Wandering out of your lane in a curve puts you into the path of a vehicle you cannot see, and the slowing belongs before the curve rather than in it.
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21. You are behind a slow vehicle on a two-lane road and a marked passing lane begins a mile ahead. What is the sensible choice?
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Answer D: Wait for the passing lane rather than using the opposing lane
A passing lane lets you overtake without ever entering the lane used by oncoming traffic, which is far safer than a pass a minute earlier.
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22. Why should a rider pull in the clutch at the first sign that the engine is seizing?
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Answer B: So a locking engine cannot lock the rear wheel through the drive train
A seizing engine can lock up, and with the clutch engaged that would lock the rear wheel, so disconnecting the drive keeps the wheel rolling while you coast off the road.
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23. What must a driver be ready to do along the stretch of road where this sign is posted?
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Answer D: Slow down and stop for a child who steps into the roadway
Children misjudge speed and distance and act without warning, so the driver reduces speed, covers the brake and scans the sidewalks and parked vehicles.
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24. You are on a two-lane road where a broken yellow line runs on your side of the center. What does that pattern allow?
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Answer C: Passing when the way ahead is clear and it is otherwise legal
A broken yellow center line marks a stretch where passing is permitted for traffic on that side when it can be completed safely.
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25. A driver behind you on a two-lane road clearly wants to pass. Why should you not wave that driver past?
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Answer B: You cannot see the whole road ahead for them and they may rely on your signal
Waving another driver out invites them to trust your judgment of a road you cannot see well enough, and the decision to pass belongs to the driver making it.