Sharing the road
A streetcar is stopped at a safety zone marked on the road. What is the fastest you may pass it?
- No more than 10 mph. Correct answer
- No more than 25 mph.
- You may not pass it at all until it moves.
Why
Safety zones are areas set aside for people waiting for buses, streetcars and trolleys, marked by raised buttons or markers, and you may never drive through one. Pass one of them while it sits at a safety zone, or while it waits at a traffic light, and 10 mph is your ceiling, because passengers are stepping on and off right there. Twenty-five is the residential default and far too fast beside people boarding. A full stop is not required unless something else demands it, such as a pedestrian crossing in front of you. Separate rules cover light rail vehicles: do not pass one on the left, moving or standing, except where the tracks hug the right side, on a one-way street, or when a traffic officer directs you to.
Where this comes from
California Driver's Handbook, June 2025 edition. The correct answer is No more than 10 mph.
The rule behind this one
Sharing the road in California goes through the whole topic, with the page of the California Driver's Handbook behind every rule.
More on sharing the road
- Which vehicles are required to stop before crossing railroad tracks, even when no train is in sight?
- A school bus with its red lights flashing is stopped on the far side of a divided highway that has two lanes in each direction. Must you stop?
- An average passenger vehicle at 55 mph can stop within 300 feet. How much room can a large vehicle need at the same speed?
- The large truck ahead of you swings out to the left as it comes up to a corner. What is the safest reading of that move?