Turns, lanes, passing and parking
You want to make a U-turn near the top of a hill. Other drivers can see your car only from about 300 feet away. May you make the U-turn there?
- No. A U-turn is not allowed where other drivers cannot see you from 500 feet away in either direction. Correct answer
- Yes, because 300 feet is more than the 200 feet the law requires.
- Yes, as long as you signal at least 100 feet before turning.
Why
The U-turn rule is about being seen. The manual forbids a U-turn near the top of a hill, on a curve or anywhere else where drivers cannot see your vehicle from 500 feet away in either direction. At 300 feet, you are short of the requirement. The 200 feet in the second answer is a different rule: when passing on a two-way road, you must be back in your lane before an oncoming vehicle comes within 200 feet. Signaling 100 feet ahead is required for any turn, but it does not make an unsafe spot legal. Unless other drivers can see you from 500 feet in both directions, the spot is not one where a U-turn is allowed.
Where this comes from
New York State Driver's Manual (MV-21), April 2026 version. The correct answer is No. A U-turn is not allowed where other drivers cannot see you from 500 feet away in either direction.
More on turns, lanes, passing and parking
- You are on a limited access expressway, and a paved path in the median connects your side with the other side. May you use it to make a U-turn?
- Where a U-turn is allowed on a multi-lane road, from which position must you start it?
- You want to pass on the left on a two-way road. When you get back into the right lane, what is the minimum distance that must still separate you from any oncoming vehicle?
- On a two-way road, you are about 80 feet from a railroad crossing and a slow truck is in front of you. May you pass it on the left?