Speed & Space Management

Study questions with answers

12 sample Speed & Space Management questions with the correct answer, a short explanation, and the official handbook reference. Read through them, then take the quiz above.

1. 1. If your car begins to hydroplane, the best action is to:

   Correct answer: Take your foot off the gas and let it slow down

   Ease off the accelerator and let the car slow down; braking hard can make the skid worse.

   Source: Alabama Driver Manual — Chapter 7, Hydroplaning

2. 2. Excessive speed at night is especially dangerous because:

   Correct answer: Your view is limited to what your headlights show

   At night you can see only as far as your headlights reach, and high speeds do not leave enough room to stop.

   Source: Alabama Driver Manual — Chapter 7, Night Driving

3. 3. With headlights on high beam under normal conditions, you can typically see ahead about:

   Correct answer: 350 feet

   High-beam headlights normally light the road roughly 350 feet ahead.

   Source: Alabama Driver Manual — Chapter 7, Night Driving

4. 4. Overdriving your headlights means you are:

   Correct answer: Driving faster than you can stop within the lit distance

   Overdriving your headlights is driving so fast that you cannot stop within the distance your lights let you see.

   Source: Alabama Driver Manual — Chapter 7, Night Driving

5. 5. When conditions require slower speeds, you should also reduce speed when approaching:

   Correct answer: The crest of a hill or a curve

   Slow down when you near the crest of a hill or a curve, where you cannot see far ahead.

   Source: Alabama Driver Manual — Chapter 6, Slow Speeds Often Required

6. 6. A statutory limit of 65 mph applies to a road only when it is:

   Correct answer: Posted with that speed limit

   The 65 mph statutory figure applies where it is posted.

   Source: Alabama Driver Manual — Chapter 6, Statutory Speed Limits

7. 7. The total distance needed to stop a vehicle is made up of:

   Correct answer: Thinking distance plus braking distance

   Stopping distance combines the driver's thinking (reaction) distance and the braking distance of the vehicle.

   Source: Alabama Driver Manual — Chapter 4, Stopping Distance

8. 8. To apply the two-second rule, you begin counting when the vehicle ahead:

   Correct answer: Passes a fixed object such as a sign or tree

   Pick a fixed object and start counting when the car ahead passes it; if you reach it before finishing the count, you are too close.

   Source: Alabama Driver Manual — Chapter 4, How to Avoid Rear-End Collisions

9. 9. Driving much slower than the normal flow of traffic is dangerous because it can:

   Correct answer: Block or hinder other vehicles and cause crashes

   Driving too slowly blocks or hinders other traffic and causes accidents, so you must not impede normal safe speeds.

   Source: Alabama Driver Manual — Chapter 6, Speed Limits

10. 10. Where no other limit is posted, the statutory speed limit in locations not otherwise listed is:

    Correct answer: 55 mph

    The manual sets a statutory 55 mph limit for other locations that are not specifically listed.

    Source: Alabama Driver Manual — Chapter 6, Statutory Speed Limits

11. 11. You should increase your following distance beyond two seconds when you are:

    Correct answer: Driving a longer vehicle than a car

    A longer following distance also applies when you drive a vehicle longer than a car, as well as in poor conditions.

    Source: Alabama Driver Manual — Chapter 4, How to Avoid Rear-End Collisions

12. 12. Partial hydroplaning of a standard passenger car's tires generally begins at about:

    Correct answer: 35 mph

    Partial hydroplaning starts at roughly 35 mph and increases with speed.

    Source: Alabama Driver Manual — Chapter 7, Hydroplaning