Turns, lanes, passing and parking
You are joining traffic on the highway. How much space does the handbook say you need in order to merge?
- A full block, about 300 feet. Correct answer
- Half a block, about 150 feet.
- About 400 feet.
Why
The handbook gives two gap sizes for merging, entering or exiting traffic: a smaller one for city streets and a bigger one for the highway. On the highway you need a full block, roughly 300 feet. Half a block, about 150 feet, is the figure for city streets. 400 feet measures something else: it is the approximate distance covered by the five seconds of signaling you give before taking a highway exit. Whenever you enter traffic from a full stop, signal and leave enough room to get up to the speed of traffic.
Where this comes from
California Driver's Handbook, June 2025 edition. The correct answer is A full block, about 300 feet.
The rule behind this one
Turns, lanes, passing and parking in California goes through the whole topic, with the page of the California Driver's Handbook behind every rule.
More on turns, lanes, passing and parking
- Where does the handbook say you must NOT pass another vehicle?
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