Sharing the road
You are about to pass a motorcycle that is riding near the right edge of a wide lane. How much room must you give it?
- The full width of a lane, the same as any other vehicle. Correct answer
- Enough to share its lane, since it is riding to one side.
- Half a lane, since a motorcycle is narrower than a car.
Why
A motorcycle is entitled to a whole lane, just like a car or a truck, even though it uses only part of it. When you pass one, you give it that full lane width and you never move into its lane space, however wide the lane is and however far to the side the rider is. Riders shift inside the lane on purpose, to avoid debris or to see better, so the empty half of the lane is not spare room for you. The law allows two motorcycles to ride side by side in one lane, but a motorcycle may not share a lane with a car, and that works in both directions. Pass a motorcycle exactly as you would pass a car, from the next lane over and never from inside its own.
Where this comes from
New York State Driver's Manual (MV-21), April 2026 version. The correct answer is The full width of a lane, the same as any other vehicle.
- Chapter 6 / How to Pass, page 39
- Chapter 11 / Sharing the Road › Motorcyclists, page 71
More on sharing the road
- Outside New York City, you want to turn right on a red light where turning is allowed. What should you do to avoid hitting a bicyclist coming up from your right rear?
- Your light is green. A pedestrian using a white cane starts across the street in front of you at an unmarked crosswalk. What must you do?
- You come up behind a Class B moped. Where on the road is it allowed to operate?
- A snowmobile rider needs to cross a state highway ahead of you. How does New York law require the crossing to be made?