Massachusetts RMV Motorcycle Practice Test 28
- Questions25
- Correct to pass18
- Passing score72%
- Minimum age16 years
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1. When is a driver or rider most likely to need hand and arm signals instead of the vehicle turn signal lamps?
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Answer D: When the lamps have failed or cannot be seen because of glare or a load
Hand and arm signals replace or reinforce the lamps whenever the lamps do not work or cannot be seen clearly by other road users.
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2. You find that the road surface has turned to sheet ice. What speed is appropriate?
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Answer A: A crawl, slow enough that you could stop without braking hard
Ice can cut grip to a fraction of normal, so stopping takes many times the usual distance and only a crawl leaves any margin.
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3. A police officer is directing traffic at an intersection and waves you through a red light. What should you do?
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Answer C: Follow the officer, whose directions come before signs and signals
Directions given by a police officer or an authorized flagger override signs, signals and pavement markings.
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4. The lane you are in is marked with a straight arrow and a right-turn arrow together. What does that mean?
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Answer D: Drivers in that lane may either go straight or turn right
A lane marked with two arrows serves both movements, so a driver in it may take either one.
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5. You are driving through a residential area where parked cars hide the side streets. What is the safest approach?
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Answer C: Slow down and cover the brake as you pass each opening
Where parked vehicles hide side streets and driveways, lower speed and a covered brake buy the time you lose in sight distance.
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6. Who should set the pace of a group ride?
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Answer A: The last rider in the group, so that nobody is forced to hurry to keep up
The tail ender sets the pace: every rider watches the mirrors for the rider behind, and if someone falls back the whole group slows a little to stay together.
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7. A driver has to stop for a train at this sign. How far back from the nearest rail should the vehicle be held?
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Answer C: No closer than roughly fifteen feet
A train and its load overhang the rails, so stopping no closer than about fifteen feet keeps the vehicle outside the space the train actually sweeps.
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8. A loaded truck is coming up an entrance ramp as you approach in the right lane of the freeway. What is the most helpful action?
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Answer A: Adjust your speed to open a gap for it
A heavy vehicle accelerates slowly, so opening a gap or moving over costs you seconds and saves the truck driver from being forced to stop on the ramp.
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9. Why is this restriction used so often on a divided road just before a crest or a bend?
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Answer A: Because a vehicle turning across the median there stays hidden from approaching drivers until it is too late
The maneuver needs a long gap and good visibility, and where sight distance is short an approaching driver has no time to react to a vehicle turning across the road.
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10. After the leader of a staggered group completes a pass, what should the leader do?
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Answer A: Move to the left position and hold passing speed to open room for the next rider
Returning to the left position and keeping speed opens the gap the next rider needs to finish the pass and settle back into formation.
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11. The throttle sticks open and will not close when you roll it back. What should you do?
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Answer B: Squeeze in the clutch and shut the engine down with the cut-off switch
Pulling in the clutch cuts power to the rear wheel immediately, and the cut-off switch stops the engine without the rider letting go of the handlebars.
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12. The light ahead is green but traffic beyond the intersection is backed up. What should you do?
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Answer B: Wait behind the intersection until there is room to clear it completely
You may not enter an intersection unless you can get completely through it, because stopping inside blocks cross traffic when the signal changes.
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13. The rear tire loses air suddenly while you are riding. Which symptom should you expect and how should you respond?
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Answer D: The rear sways or feels heavy, so ease off and slow with the front brake
A rear flat makes the back of the motorcycle wallow or sway, so hold your line, close the throttle gently and slow mainly with the brake on the wheel that still has air.
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14. A reduced speed limit posted with this sign and a plaque giving hours is in force
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Answer C: during the hours shown on the plaque, or while the beacon is flashing
A school speed limit applies during the periods stated on the plaque or while the attached beacon flashes, and the regular limit governs outside those periods.
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15. What condition does this sign warn a driver about?
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Answer B: Another road joins the road being traveled, from one side
It announces a side road entering the main roadway, so the driver should expect vehicles waiting to pull out and other vehicles slowing to turn in.
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16. Why must a tank bag be strapped down properly rather than simply laid on the tank?
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Answer D: Because a bag that slides can reach the controls or your hands
Braking pushes anything loose on the tank forward toward the handlebars, where it can jam the steering or interfere with the levers.
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17. Why does a motorcycle feel less stable at very low speed when a passenger is aboard?
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Answer B: The passenger's weight sits high and to the rear, so balance is easier to upset
A second person adds mass above and behind the rear axle, so slow speed maneuvers such as pulling away, walking pace turns and stops demand more care.
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18. A parking space is marked with the international symbol of access. Who may use it?
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Answer A: Only a vehicle displaying the required placard or plate
Accessible spaces may be used only by a vehicle that displays a valid disability placard or plate, no matter how short the stop would be.
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19. The only person offering you a ride home has been drinking. What should you do?
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Answer B: Do not get in; find another way home
A passenger in an impaired driver's vehicle shares all of the risk and can do nothing about it from the seat, so the only safe answer is another ride.
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20. Used correctly, roughly how much of a motorcycle's total stopping power comes from the front brake?
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Answer B: About three quarters of it
Braking shifts weight onto the front wheel, so a smoothly squeezed front brake supplies roughly 70 percent or more of the stopping power.
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21. You are stopped at a stop sign on a two-way stop intersection and the cross street has no stop signs at all. What does that mean for you?
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Answer A: You yield to all cross traffic no matter how long that takes
At a two-way stop only your direction is controlled, so there is no taking turns; you wait for a gap big enough to enter safely.
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22. You are approaching the crest of a hill and cannot see the road beyond it. What should you do?
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Answer C: Slow down and keep well to the right
Beyond a blind crest there may be a stopped vehicle, a cyclist or an oncoming driver crossing the center line, so reduce speed and hold your own side.
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23. A sign beside the signal reads STOP HERE ON RED. What does it tell you?
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Answer B: Stop at that point on red, not closer to the intersection
The sign marks the required stopping point, which is set back from the corner so that turning vehicles and sight lines are not blocked.
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24. What should a driver do first after passing this sign?
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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.
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25. Where should a passenger sit on the motorcycle?
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Answer A: As far forward as possible without crowding the operator
Sitting well forward keeps the passenger weight close to the center of the motorcycle, which helps it handle closer to normal.