Sharing the road in California

By the end of this topic you can

• You can yield correctly to pedestrians, including blind pedestrians.
• You can pass a bicyclist legally and safely.
• You can give motorcycles enough space.
• You can stay out of a truck's blind spots and pass it correctly.
• You can respond to emergency vehicles and railroad crossings.

What you need to know and understand

• Pedestrians have the right of way in marked and unmarked crosswalks; never pass a vehicle stopped at a crosswalk.
• When passing a bicyclist, change lanes if another lane is available; otherwise leave at least 3 feet, or wait.
• You may enter a bike lane to turn only within 200 feet of the corner.
• Leave a three-second following distance behind a motorcycle, and never share its lane.
• At 55 mph a car can stop in about 300 feet, while a large truck may need up to 400 feet.
• Pull to the right and stop for emergency vehicles using sirens and red lights, and do not follow within 300 feet.
• When a train is coming, stop at least 15 feet from the nearest track.

People on foot and on bikes

Slow down or stop for anyone crossing. Pedestrians include people on skates or skateboards and people using wheelchairs. A person with a white cane or guide dog always has the right of way: do not honk, and do not stop in the middle of the crosswalk. Take extra care when turning or backing in a quiet hybrid or electric car.

Under California's Three Feet for Safety Act, change lanes to pass a bicyclist if another lane in your direction is free and it is safe. If you cannot, leave at least 3 feet. If even that is not possible, slow down and pass only when it will not endanger the rider. Check for bikes before opening your door.

Motorcycles, trucks, buses and light rail

• Motorcycles: keep three seconds behind, never pass in the same lane, and look for them before turning right or changing lanes.
• Trucks: if you cannot see the driver's side mirrors, the driver cannot see you. Pass on the left and do not cut in front.
• On roads with four or more lanes each way, trucks and towing vehicles may use only the two right lanes.
• Buses, streetcars and trolleys: when one is stopped at a safety zone or a traffic light, you may pass at no more than 10 mph. Never drive through a safety zone, and do not pass light rail or a streetcar on the left except in the few cases the handbook lists.
• Slow vehicles with an orange and red triangle usually travel at 25 mph or less.

Emergency vehicles and railroad tracks

1. Siren and red lights behind you: pull to the right edge of the road and stop until it has passed.
2. Do not follow an emergency vehicle within 300 feet when its siren or lights are on.
3. At a railroad crossing, look and listen both ways. When warned of a train, stop at least 15 feet from the nearest track.
4. Flashing red lights at a crossing mean stay stopped, even if the gate rises, until the lights stop.
5. If your car stalls on the tracks and a train is coming, get out at once and move away diagonally toward the direction the train is coming from, then call 911.

Common mistakes

• Squeezing past a cyclist in the same lane when the next lane is empty.
• Following a truck so closely that you cannot see its mirrors.
• Passing a car that has stopped at a crosswalk; it may be hiding a pedestrian.
• Driving onto tracks when there is no room to clear them on the other side.

Test yourself: Sharing the road in California

Answer each question, then read the explanation. Questions come in a random order each time.

Go deeper

• California DMV Pre-Drive Checklist
• California Provisional License Restrictions for Under 18s
• California 50 Hours Driving Log