UT DMV Weather and Hazardous Conditions 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: When driving on packed snow, you should reduce your speed by about how much?
- One quarter
- One third
- Half (Correct answer)
- Ten percent
Correct answer: Half
On packed snow you should cut your speed in half to maintain traction and control.
Question 2: What is the safest action if your vehicle begins to hydroplane?
- Ease off the accelerator and avoid braking suddenly (Correct answer)
- Brake hard immediately
- Accelerate to regain traction
- Turn the wheel sharply toward the shoulder
Correct answer: Ease off the accelerator and avoid braking suddenly
Easing off the gas lets the tires regain contact with the road without upsetting the vehicle's balance.
Question 3: Bridges and overpasses are especially dangerous in cold weather because they:
- Are narrower than regular roads
- Freeze before other road surfaces (Correct answer)
- Have lower speed limits
- Collect more sand and gravel
Correct answer: Freeze before other road surfaces
Bridges are exposed to cold air above and below, so they ice over before regular roadways.
Question 4: In fog, you should use your:
- High-beam headlights
- Parking lights only
- Hazard lights while moving at normal speed
- Low-beam headlights (Correct answer)
Correct answer: Low-beam headlights
High beams reflect off fog and reduce visibility, so low beams are the correct choice.
Question 5: What is black ice?
- Ice mixed with asphalt sealant
- Frozen mud on the shoulder
- A thin, nearly invisible layer of ice on the road (Correct answer)
- Ice that only forms at night
Correct answer: A thin, nearly invisible layer of ice on the road
Black ice is a thin transparent ice layer that makes the road look merely wet, making it very hard to detect.
Question 6: If you are caught in a dust storm while driving in Utah, the safest action is to:
- Keep driving slowly with hazard lights on
- Pull off the road, stop, and turn off your lights (Correct answer)
- Stop in your travel lane with headlights on
- Speed up to get through it quickly
Correct answer: Pull off the road, stop, and turn off your lights
Pulling completely off the road and turning off lights prevents other drivers from following your taillights into a collision.
Question 7: When roads are slippery, your following distance should be:
- Increased well beyond the normal following distance (Correct answer)
- Kept the same as in dry conditions
- Reduced so you can see the car ahead better
- Exactly two seconds
Correct answer: Increased well beyond the normal following distance
Slippery roads greatly increase stopping distance, so you need a much larger gap than normal.
UT DMV Weather and Hazardous Conditions 2
When driving on packed snow, you should reduce your speed by about how much?