Sharing the road
You are approaching a person riding a horse along the side of the road. Which of these actions is illegal?
- Sounding your horn as you approach or pass the horse. Correct answer
- Slowing down before you reach the horse.
- Leaving a wide distance between your vehicle and the horse as you pass.
Why
Horse riders are covered by the rules of the road and protected by them, and the law asks drivers for extra care around them. You must keep to a reasonable speed and a reasonable distance when you approach a horse that is being ridden or led along the road, and it is illegal to use your horn while approaching or passing it. So slowing down and giving the horse room are exactly what the manual expects, not violations. Riders have duties too: they go one behind the other and keep to the right, along the curb or edge, or on a usable shoulder, lane or path. Your part is to slow down, leave room and keep quiet; the horn is the one thing the law takes off the table.
Where this comes from
New York State Driver's Manual (MV-21), April 2026 version. The correct answer is Sounding your horn as you approach or pass the horse.
More on sharing the road
- You are about to pass a bicyclist on a two-lane road. What does the manual tell you to do with your speed as you go by?
- On a steel deck bridge, the motorcyclist ahead of you moves to the center of the lane. What should you do?
- At an intersection you see a marked area painted across the lane ahead of where cars are required to stop. What is it, and how should you treat it?
- You stop behind a truck at a red light on an uphill street. Why should you leave extra space in front of your car?