roadwise.Open study app

Nebraska driving lesson · Sharing the Road & Crashes

Large trucks and buses

A 3-minute lesson from the Nebraska course. Read the rules and examples, follow the handbook page references, and check your understanding before you move on.

Study this lesson in the app Back to the course
Read time
3 minutes
Course unit
Sharing the Road & Crashes
Checkpoint questions
5
Source pages
79, 80

Trucks and buses need far more room to stop and turn, and their drivers can't see large areas around them. Staying out of those areas prevents many car-truck crashes.

340 ft

Minimum stopping distance for a loaded truck at 55 mph on a clear, dry road (good tires, adjusted brakes)

Handbook p. 79 ↗

Know the rule

Trucks and buses have air brakes, which don't work instantly like a car's hydraulic brakes. Don't make sudden stops in front of large vehicles or abruptly pull out in front of them.

Handbook p. 79 ↗

Know the rule

If you're turning off the road, avoid changing lanes in front of a large vehicle.

Handbook p. 79 ↗

Know the rule

Avoid the right lane on steep up or down grades and near truck weigh stations, where slow trucks re-enter faster traffic. Some long, steep hills add a right lane signed "Slow Traffic Keep Right" for trucks, farm equipment and RVs.

Handbook p. 79 ↗

Know the rule

Avoid driving near vehicles marked as carrying hazardous materials, such as "Explosives," "Poison" or "Flammable."

Handbook p. 79 ↗

No-Zone

Areas around a truck or bus where cars disappear into blind spots, or are so close they restrict the driver's ability to stop or maneuver safely.

Handbook p. 79 ↗

The No-Zones:

  • Backing: never pass close behind a truck or bus that is backing up or about to
  • Front: after passing, don't cut in until you see the truck's entire front in your rearview mirror
  • Rear: deep blind spot behind; don't tailgate. If you see its mirrors, its driver can see you
  • Sides: much larger blind spots than a car's; don't ride beside a truck or bus for long
  • Wide turns: trucks swing wide and can't see beside or behind; never squeeze around them
Handbook p. 80 ↗

Know the rule

In a roundabout, large vehicles may use the raised truck apron for their rear wheels.

Handbook p. 79 ↗

Put it into practice

You've just passed a semi on the interstate. Before moving back into its lane, wait until you can see the truck's entire front in your rearview mirror.

Check your understanding

Read the question, decide on an answer, then open it to check the explanation. These are Roadwise study questions based on the source handbook.

A loaded truck traveling 55 MPH on a clear, dry road needs a minimum stopping distance of about:
  1. 100 feet
  2. 500 feet
  3. 1,000 feet
  4. 340 feet

Answer: 340 feet

A loaded truck at 55 mph needs a minimum of about 340 feet to stop.

Handbook p. 79 ↗
Unlike cars, trucks and buses typically use:
  1. Air brakes
  2. Hydraulic brakes that respond faster than cars'
  3. Antilock disc brakes like motorcycles
  4. Hydraulic brakes with a larger reservoir

Answer: Air brakes

Unlike the hydraulic brakes on cars, trucks and buses have air brakes, which do not operate instantly.

Handbook p. 79 ↗
The 'No-Zone' around a truck or bus refers to areas where:
  1. Cars are legally prohibited from driving at all
  2. Cars disappear into blind spots or restrict the truck's ability to maneuver
  3. Only trucks are allowed to travel
  4. Trucks must yield to smaller vehicles

Answer: Cars disappear into blind spots or restrict the truck's ability to maneuver

No-Zones are blind spots or areas that restrict a truck's ability to maneuver.

Handbook p. 79 ↗
You should never pull in front of a truck unless:
  1. You are at least one car length ahead
  2. The truck flashes its lights first
  3. You can see the entire front of the truck in your rearview mirror
  4. You are on a highway with three or more lanes

Answer: You can see the entire front of the truck in your rearview mirror

Pull back in only once you see the truck's entire front in your mirror.

Handbook p. 80 ↗
Trucks and buses have much larger blind spots on their sides than cars do.
  1. True
  2. False

Answer: True

Trucks and buses have larger side blind spots than passenger cars.

Handbook p. 79 ↗
Take the lesson checkpoint in the app

More in Sharing the Road & Crashes

All Nebraska lessons