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North Dakota driving lesson · Turning, Roundabouts & Highway Driving

Interstate driving & interchanges

A 3-minute lesson from the North Dakota 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
3 minutes
Course unit
Turning, Roundabouts & Highway Driving
Checkpoint questions
6
Source pages
27, 28

Speeds are higher on the Interstate, so your vehicle travels farther during your reaction time. Stay alert, keep right if you're slower, and never back up. If you miss your exit, go on to the next one.

To drive safely on the Interstate:

  • Be alert; use your mirrors to know what's behind you as well as ahead
  • Signal and make sure the lane is clear when changing lanes
  • After passing, don't cut back into the right lane too quickly
  • Keep to the right if you're traveling slowly
  • Avoid driving when you are tired
  • Dim your lights when following another vehicle
Handbook p. 28 ↗

Know the rule

Never stop on the traveled part of the roadway. In an emergency, stop on the shoulder and raise your hood to show you're having trouble.

Handbook p. 28 ↗

Interchange

The ramps used to get on and off the Interstate. The two most common types are the diamond and the cloverleaf.

Handbook p. 28 ↗
Interchange types (diamond, cloverleaf)
Diamond and cloverleaf interchanges

Know the rule

Highway guide signs show interchanges well in advance. Watch for them and move into the proper lane before you reach your interchange.

Handbook p. 28 ↗

Know the rule

Never back up on the Interstate or on a ramp. If you miss your interchange, go on to the next one. If you exit at the wrong one, follow it out and return to the highway by the on ramp.

Handbook p. 28 ↗

Know the rule

Don't use median crossovers. They are for authorized vehicles only, such as emergency and maintenance vehicles.

Handbook p. 28 ↗
Freeway exit and entrance ramps
Entrance ramp and exit ramp

Know the rule

Entrance ramps let you adjust your speed to merge safely. Avoid stopping on them; stop only when there's no opening in the traffic flow.

Handbook p. 28 ↗

Know the rule

Unless signs say otherwise, a vehicle entering a freeway from an entrance ramp must yield the right of way to vehicles on the main roadway.

Handbook p. 28 ↗

Know the rule

Exit ramps are for leaving the highway. Never stop or back up on them.

Handbook p. 28 ↗

Put it into practice

You pass your exit by a few hundred feet. Don't stop, back up, or use the median crossover. Continue to the next interchange, exit there, and come back.

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.

Where should you drive on the Interstate if you are traveling slower than other traffic?
  1. Drive in the center lane only
  2. Use whichever lane is emptiest
  3. Keep to the left
  4. Keep to the right

Answer: Keep to the right

On the Interstate, keep to the right if you are traveling slowly.

Handbook p. 28 ↗
If you miss your interchange exit on the Interstate, what should you do?
  1. Go on to the next interchange
  2. Back up carefully on the shoulder
  3. Stop and wait for a gap to reverse
  4. Cross the median to turn around

Answer: Go on to the next interchange

Never back up on the Interstate; if you miss your interchange, continue to the next one.

Handbook p. 28 ↗
Unless posted otherwise, who must yield when entering a freeway from an entrance ramp?
  1. The vehicle entering the freeway must yield to traffic on the main roadway
  2. Traffic on the main roadway must yield to entering vehicles
  3. Only trucks must yield, cars have the right of way
  4. Both merge simultaneously with no yielding

Answer: The vehicle entering the freeway must yield to traffic on the main roadway

Unless posted signs indicate otherwise, a vehicle entering a freeway must yield the right of way to vehicles on the main roadway.

Handbook p. 28 ↗
In an Interstate emergency, where should you stop your vehicle?
  1. On the entrance ramp
  2. In the traveled lane with hazards on
  3. On the shoulder
  4. In the median crossover

Answer: On the shoulder

Never stop on the traveled part of the roadway; in an emergency, stop on the shoulder and raise your hood.

Handbook p. 28 ↗
What are the two most common types of Interstate interchanges mentioned in the handbook?
  1. Diamond and cloverleaf
  2. Circular and triangular
  3. Elevated and underground
  4. Single-lane and multi-lane

Answer: Diamond and cloverleaf

The two most common types of interchanges are the diamond and the cloverleaf.

Handbook p. 28 ↗
You should never use median crossovers on the Interstate unless you are an authorized emergency or maintenance vehicle.
  1. True
  2. False

Answer: True

Median crossovers are for authorized vehicles only, such as emergency and maintenance vehicles.

Handbook p. 28 ↗
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