South Dakota DPS Permit Practice Test 24
- Questions25
- Correct to pass20
- Passing score80%
- Minimum age14 years
-
1. A blue motorist service sign showing a fuel symbol and an arrow means that
Show answer
Answer D: fuel is available in the direction shown, and the sign imposes no obligation
Service signs are informational: they tell the driver what is available and in which direction, but they create no requirement.
-
2. You are driving through a long curve on a road with two lanes in your direction. What is correct?
Show answer
Answer A: Stay within your own lane all the way through, adjusting speed before you enter
Wandering out of your lane in a curve puts you into the path of a vehicle you cannot see, and the slowing belongs before the curve rather than in it.
-
3. What is the correct first step when parallel parking behind an empty space?
Show answer
Answer D: Signal, pull up alongside the vehicle in front of the space, then back slowly into it
Parallel parking is done in reverse from a position alongside the vehicle ahead of the space, because backing in lets the rear wheels guide the vehicle to the curb.
-
4. Where does the restriction that starts at this sign come to an end?
Show answer
Answer D: Where the centerline markings show that overtaking is allowed again
The sign marks the start of the restricted section, and the centerline markings along the road show how far it runs and where overtaking becomes lawful again.
-
5. At a freeway exit, the paved triangle between the ramp and the through lanes is filled with diagonal white lines. What do they mean?
Show answer
Answer A: Stay out of that area, because it is not meant to be driven on
Chevron and diagonal markings fill paved areas that traffic is not intended to use, so drivers should keep out of them.
-
6. May a South Dakota driver cross an unprotected fire hose laid across a street during a fire response?
Show answer
Answer D: No, unless the fire department official in command consents
Driving over an unprotected fire department hose is prohibited unless the fire official in command gives consent.
-
7. Your left-turn lane shows a flashing yellow arrow. What does that indication allow?
Show answer
Answer B: A left turn after yielding to oncoming traffic and to pedestrians
A flashing yellow arrow marks a permissive left turn: the movement is allowed, but oncoming vehicles and pedestrians keep the right-of-way.
-
8. On a multi-lane street, a yield line is painted well back from an unsignalized crosswalk rather than right at it. Why?
Show answer
Answer D: So drivers in the other lanes can see the pedestrian
Setting the yield line back keeps a stopped vehicle from hiding a crossing pedestrian from drivers in the next lane, which is a common cause of these crashes.
-
9. Unless a different limit is posted, what is the top speed on a South Dakota township road?
Show answer
Answer B: 55 miles per hour
State law caps township roads at 55 miles per hour, although a township board may establish and post different speed zones.
-
10. You are approaching a highway-rail grade crossing marked only with a crossbuck sign. What does that sign require?
Show answer
Answer A: Yield to any approaching train and cross only when the tracks are clear
The crossbuck is a regulatory yield sign, and a train can never stop or steer around a vehicle, so the driver must always give way.
-
11. Before making a right turn at an intersection, what should you check besides oncoming traffic?
Show answer
Answer B: Your right blind spot and the crosswalk, for cyclists and pedestrians
Right turns often catch a cyclist or a pedestrian coming up on the right, so check the blind spot and the crosswalk before you turn.
-
12. You have strapped luggage to the roof rack for a long trip. What should you expect?
Show answer
Answer D: A higher center of gravity, so take the curves and lane changes gently
Weight on the roof raises the center of gravity and makes the vehicle lean and respond more slowly to steering.
-
13. The trapezoid sign shape is associated with
Show answer
Answer C: recreational and cultural interest area signing
The trapezoid is used for recreational and cultural interest area guide signs and for national forest route markers.
-
14. Two roads come together at a shallow angle under a MERGE sign, with no yield line on either one. What is expected of you?
Show answer
Answer D: Adjust your speed and position so you blend smoothly into the other traffic
A merge means neither road ends at a stop; drivers adjust speed and position so that the two streams fit together without stopping.
-
15. In normal operation, which indication always comes between a green and a red on the same signal face?
Show answer
Answer C: A steady yellow
The yellow change interval must follow every green or green arrow, so a signal can never jump straight from green to red.
-
16. How should a lap and shoulder belt be positioned?
Show answer
Answer A: Lap belt low across the hips and shoulder belt across the chest and collarbone
The lap belt must bear against the strong pelvic bones rather than soft organs, and the shoulder belt must cross the rib cage and collarbone so crash forces spread over the skeleton.
-
17. You drive away and the car feels sluggish while a warning light glows on the dash. What is a likely cause?
Show answer
Answer B: The parking brake was left partly applied
Driving with the parking brake partly on overheats the rear brakes and can ruin them, so release it fully and check that the warning light goes out.
-
18. In plain words, what is oversteer?
Show answer
Answer C: The rear of the vehicle slides out and the car turns too sharply
Oversteer means the rear tires have lost grip first, so the tail swings out and the vehicle turns more than you asked it to.
-
19. A hands free phone conversation is which kind of distraction?
Show answer
Answer C: Cognitive, because your mind leaves the road
Hands free equipment removes the manual and visual parts of a call but not the mental load, and it is the mental load that makes a driver miss hazards.
-
20. Two vehicles meet on a steep, narrow mountain road with no room to pass. Which driver should back up?
Show answer
Answer C: The driver heading downhill, who has more control while reversing
On a narrow mountain road the vehicle facing downhill yields, because backing uphill gives better control than reversing down a grade.
-
21. A yellow diamond showing arrows arranged in a circle warns of
Show answer
Answer B: a circular intersection such as a roundabout ahead
The circular intersection warning sign announces a roundabout or traffic circle so drivers can slow down and prepare to yield to traffic already circulating.
-
22. You reach a stretch of road covered by moving flood water of unknown depth. What is the correct decision?
Show answer
Answer D: Turn around and take another route
About a foot of moving water is enough to carry away most cars, and the roadbed under the water may already be washed out, so the only safe choice is to turn around.
-
23. What should a driver do first after passing this sign?
Show answer
Answer A: Move into the right-hand lane and stay there
Traffic returns to two-way operation, so the driver keeps to the right of the centerline and stops treating the left side as available.
-
24. As a center two-way left-turn lane reaches an intersection, the markings change into a single left-turn lane. What does that mean for you?
Show answer
Answer D: From that point it serves one direction only, so use it just to turn left
Where the shared lane becomes a marked turn bay it belongs to one direction of travel, and only vehicles making that left turn may occupy it.
-
25. You are in a passing zone that continues over the crest of a hill ahead. May you start a pass?
Show answer
Answer B: Only if you can finish it well before the crest
Beyond the crest you cannot see oncoming traffic, so any part of the pass that happens there is being made blind.