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New Jersey driving lesson · Safe Driving Rules

Speed limits, passing, and keeping right

A 4-minute lesson from the New Jersey course. Read the rules and examples, follow the handbook page references, and check your understanding before you move on.

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Read time
4 minutes
Course unit
Safe Driving Rules
Checkpoint questions
6
Source pages
64, 65, 66, 67

Speed is a factor in many fatal crashes. New Jersey sets default limits for each kind of road, but conditions can require you to go slower. Passing and lane position have their own rules, and the center lines tell you when passing is legal.

New Jersey speed limits (unless otherwise posted)

New Jersey speed limits (unless otherwise posted)
LimitWhere
25 mphSchool zones, business or residential districts
35 mphSuburban business and residential districts
50 mphNon-posted rural roadways
55 mphCertain state highways (as posted) and interstates
65 mphCertain interstate highways (as posted)
Handbook p. 64 ↗

Know the rule

You pay double fines for going 10 mph or more over the limit in a 65 mph zone. Double fines also apply to most other moving violations in a 65 mph zone.

Handbook p. 64 ↗

Know the rule

Never drive faster than weather, road or other conditions safely allow, regardless of the posted limit. Failing to slow down can be a moving violation.

Handbook p. 65 ↗

Always slow down

  • On narrow or winding roads
  • At intersections or railroad crossings
  • On hills
  • At sharp or blind curves
  • Where there are pedestrians or driving hazards
  • When the road is wet or slippery
Handbook p. 65 ↗

Know the rule

If vehicle problems keep you from keeping up with normal traffic, pull off the road and turn on your hazard lights. When road and traffic are normal, blocking traffic by driving slowly is illegal.

Handbook p. 65 ↗

Safe Corridors

A 2003 law that doubles fines for offenses such as speeding and aggressive driving on designated highways with crash rates 50% over the state rate and 1,000+ crashes in three years.

Handbook p. 65 ↗

Center line rules for passing

  • Both center lines solid: no passing
  • One line broken: pass only from the side with the broken line
  • Both lines broken: passing allowed from either side
  • Finish every pass before the center lines become solid again
Handbook p. 66 ↗

Know the rule

Most passing should be on the left. Pass on the right only on roads with more than one lane in your direction, when traffic moves in two or more continuous lines, or when the driver ahead is turning left and there's room. Never pass on the right shoulder.

Handbook p. 67 ↗

Do not pass

  • On a hill or curve, or whenever you can't see far enough ahead
  • At a street crossing or intersection
  • At a railroad crossing
  • On narrow bridges, or in underpasses or tunnels
  • Where a sign or the center lines prohibit it
  • Behind a vehicle stopped to let a pedestrian cross
Handbook p. 67 ↗

Know the rule

Keep right except when passing: drive on the right half of the road (unless it's one-way) and as close as possible to the right edge or curb.

Handbook p. 67 ↗

Know the rule

On a multi-lane road, drive in the lane nearest the right edge when it's available, except when overtaking or preparing for a left turn.

Handbook p. 67 ↗

Put it into practice

On an unposted rural road you may drive 50 mph, but heavy rain and a winding stretch ahead mean you must slow down. Going 50 there could still earn a moving violation.

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.

Motorists pay double fines for exceeding the 65 mph limit by how many miles per hour or more?
  1. 5 mph
  2. 10 mph
  3. 15 mph
  4. 20 mph

Answer: 10 mph

Motorists pay double fines for exceeding the 65 mph limit by 10 mph or more, and for most other moving violations in a 65 mph zone.

Handbook p. 64 ↗
On a two-lane road, both center lines are solid. What does this mean?
  1. Passing is allowed on both sides
  2. Passing is allowed only on the left
  3. No passing is allowed
  4. Passing is allowed only on the right

Answer: No passing is allowed

When both center lines are solid, no passing is allowed.

Handbook p. 66 ↗
On what type of road is passing on the right generally allowed?
  1. Where there are 2+ lanes in your direction
  2. Any two-lane road with light traffic
  3. Any road, as long as it's safe
  4. On a wide, paved right shoulder

Answer: Where there are 2+ lanes in your direction

Passing on the right is allowed on roads with more than one lane in the same direction, or when the vehicle ahead is turning left with room to pass.

Handbook p. 67 ↗
Where should a motorist never pass another vehicle on the right?
  1. On a multi-lane highway
  2. In a designated passing lane
  3. On the right shoulder of the road
  4. On a one-way street

Answer: On the right shoulder of the road

Passing on the right shoulder of the road is against the law.

Handbook p. 67 ↗
What does New Jersey's Safe Corridors Program do on designated highways?
  1. Lowers speed limits permanently
  2. Doubles fines for offenses like speeding
  3. Adds points for every violation
  4. Requires a lane for trucks only

Answer: Doubles fines for offenses like speeding

The Safe Corridors Program doubles fines on designated state highways for offenses including speeding and aggressive driving.

Handbook p. 65 ↗
New Jersey law prohibits blocking traffic through slow driving when road surfaces and traffic are normal.
  1. True
  2. False

Answer: True

State law prohibits blocking traffic by driving too slowly under normal road and traffic conditions.

Handbook p. 65 ↗
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