Puerto Rico sets a 15 mph limit in urban school zones and 25 mph in rural ones during the hours the zone is active on school days. Such a low speed lets you brake in time if a child darts into the street.
Each of these lowers the force of the crash: objects that give way absorb energy, a stationary object adds no speed of its own, and a glancing blow transfers less force than a head-on hit. If a collision is likely, brake hard and steer toward the least harmful option.
Getting behind the wheel on a public road counts as advance permission for a chemical test, such as a breath test, after a lawful DUI arrest. Saying no to the test brings separate penalties, among them loss of the license.
Your turn signal warns other drivers, your mirrors show traffic behind and beside you, and a quick look over your shoulder covers the blind spots the mirrors cannot reach. Skipping either check can leave a vehicle right beside you unnoticed, and skipping the signal leaves other drivers unaware that you are moving over.
All three situations call for a lower speed: narrow or curving roads leave little room for error, intersections and railroad crossings bring cross traffic and trains, and slick pavement makes stopping take longer. Driving slower buys you extra time to react.
Set the front wheels so that the curb would stop the car if it started to roll: angle them toward the curb if the car points downhill and away from it if the car points uphill. Apply the parking brake every time.
Tip Downhill means wheels toward the curb; uphill with a curb means wheels away from it.
The usual guideline is the three-second rule: keep at least 3 seconds between you and the vehicle ahead. In rain, fog or other poor conditions, leave more time so you can react and stop.
A U-turn in a school zone is dangerous because children may appear anywhere, and some states ban it there outright. Obeying the speed limit and letting children cross are duties in a school zone, not things to avoid.
The driver and every passenger, in the front and in the back, must be buckled up whenever the vehicle is moving, and young children like the one pictured must ride in a properly installed child safety seat. Seat belts sharply reduce the chance of serious injury or death in a crash.
Puerto Rico law calls for headlights from sunset to sunrise, and also any time fog, heavy rain, or similar conditions make it hard to see. There is no 30-minute allowance after sunset, and rain is just one of several situations that call for lights.
Cutting through a parking lot, gas station or other property to dodge a traffic control device is against the law. The only exception is when a police officer instructs you to do it, because an officer's directions take priority over signs and signals.
If a school bus stops on a two-lane road with its red lights flashing, traffic approaching from either direction has to stop and stay put until the lights go off and the bus moves on. Simply slowing down is not sufficient, including when the bus is on the opposite side of the road.
Tip Drivers on the far side of a highway split by a physical divider, such as a raised median, are not required to stop.
Before a road test begins, the examiner makes sure the vehicle is safe, has its seat belts, and has nothing blocking the examiner's access to the brake. Any one of these problems lets CESCO, Puerto Rico's driver services center, call off the test, so prepare the vehicle beforehand.
Most states require a parallel-parked car to have its wheels within 12 inches of the curb, and some allow up to 18, so staying within 12 inches keeps you legal in either case. A wider gap leaves the car sticking out into the travel lane, where it becomes a hazard to passing traffic.
Tip A gap of roughly 6 to 12 inches keeps you within the limit while protecting your tires from the curb.
No one number is safe in every situation. Choose your speed based on the weather, the road surface, how far you can see and how heavy traffic is, and remember that driving under the limit can still be too fast in poor conditions.
To indicate a right turn, stick your left arm through the driver's window and bend it up at the elbow so your hand points toward the sky. A straight, extended arm signals a left turn, while an arm bent downward signals that you are slowing down or stopping.
Before you back up, change lanes or brake suddenly, check the traffic behind you with your mirrors and by turning your head. Look over your shoulder through the rear window when backing, and check your blind spot before moving into another lane. These are the moments when a collision with someone behind you is most likely: backing takes you toward whatever is back there, and if you change lanes or brake hard, a vehicle coming up behind you may have no room to avoid you.
Major highways carry heavy, fast-moving traffic, so staying alert and being ready for hazards such as merging vehicles, sudden slowdowns or debris are both part of driving safely there. Keep a safe following distance and signal before every lane change.
After a blowout, hold the steering wheel firmly, take your foot off the accelerator, and keep the car going straight while it loses speed on its own. Braking hard can make you lose control, so stop only after you have eased off the road to a safe spot.
Rain, ice and fog cut your tires' grip and how far you can see, so you need extra time and room to stop. Leave more than the usual two seconds behind the car ahead, and slow down instead of hurrying.
As soon as you hear a siren or notice red or blue lights flashing, give the emergency vehicle the right-of-way by moving to the right edge of the road and stopping until it goes by. You must do this no matter what other drivers are doing.
Puerto Rico requires headlights from sunset through sunrise, as well as whenever visibility is poor. The law allows no early cutoff before dawn, so the lights must remain on until the sun has risen.
Red flashing lights mean children are getting on or off, so stop at least 20 feet back and stay put until the lights are turned off and the bus pulls away. On an undivided road, traffic in both directions must stop.
Without a sign showing otherwise, residential districts carry a 25 mph limit. Homes along the street mean children, walkers and bike riders may appear suddenly, so keep your speed down and stay ready to brake.
A stop sign, a red signal, and a stop order from an officer directing traffic each require a full stop. The same duty applies in other cases too, such as a school bus with flashing red lights or a train approaching a railroad crossing.
Slippery pavement gives your tires less traction, so lose speed before a curve or intersection rather than while you are in it. Speeding into a curve, or waiting until you are already descending a hill to downshift, makes a skid more likely.
At an intersection with no signs or signals, you yield to a vehicle approaching from your right, and a driver turning left yields to vehicles coming straight from the other direction. The yellow car has no one on its right, so it goes first; the blue car, which has the yellow car on its right, goes next; and the truck, turning left, goes last.
Blinking your brake lights or turning on the hazard flashers lets the people behind you know early that traffic is stopping for a crash ahead, which gives them room to slow down. These signals warn of danger or an unexpected slowdown; they are not a way to thank another driver or something to use while reversing out of a parking spot.
Tip Hazard flashers are for warning others of a sudden danger, not for excusing double-parking or for ordinary driving.
One standard drink is any of these: 1.5 ounces of 80-proof spirits, 5 ounces of wine, or 12 ounces of regular beer. They contain roughly the same amount of alcohol, so what you drink matters much less than how much.
Stopping distance is the ground you cover while reacting plus the distance needed to brake, so it changes with your speed, reaction time, the road surface, your tires and your brakes. The hour on the clock does not change how your brakes and tires work, although darkness may call for a slower speed.
Puerto Rico requires headlights, taillights, and other mandatory lamps to be on from sunset onward, and also whenever visibility is too poor to drive safely. Unlike states that allow a 30-minute window after sunset, Puerto Rico gives no extra time.
For drivers 21 and older, the standard legal limit is a BAC of 0.08%. Drivers under 21 are covered by zero-tolerance laws with a far lower limit, so 0.08% is not the cutoff for 18- to 20-year-olds, and 0.06% is not the standard adult limit.
Tip Watch the decimal point closely: the adult limit is 0.08% BAC, not 0.8%.
Passing must always be done on the paved, main part of the road. Pulling onto the shoulder or dirt edge to get by is never allowed, even next to a vehicle that is turning left.
Puerto Rico's Seguro de Responsabilidad Obligatorio pays up to $4,500 per accident for damage your vehicle causes to other vehicles, and it does not pay for injuries. Medical care for people hurt in car crashes comes from ACAA, a separate public program that pays no matter who was at fault.
Water on the pavement makes stopping take longer, so open up a gap of at least 4 to 5 seconds behind the vehicle ahead. Brake, steer and accelerate gently to avoid skidding.
Tip On wet pavement, plan on about twice your usual following distance so you have room to stop.
In Puerto Rico, a first DUI conviction means a fine of several hundred dollars, a license suspension, and a required alcohol and drug education or treatment program. The fine is far above $100, and a first-offense suspension is much shorter than five years.
Alcohol slows reactions and clouds judgment, so impaired drivers often brake abruptly, creep along well below the flow of traffic, weave or drift between lanes, or make unusually wide turns. If you notice these signs, stay well back and, when it is safe, report the vehicle to the police.
For their first six months, Puerto Rico learner's license holders who are 16 or 17 may drive only from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m., which puts the 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. window off-limits. A licensed adult aged 21 or older must also sit beside them.
Every question in this set has its own page with the correct answer and an explanation.
