A 4-minute lesson from the South Dakota course. Read the rules and examples, follow the handbook page references, and check your understanding before you move on.
Good turns start early: search, signal, choose the right spot in your lane, and look through the turn. When you need to reverse direction, pick the turnabout that fits the street.
Every turn:
Search all corners for traffic controls, pedestrians and other vehicles; signal
Enter and keep to the lane closest to the direction you want to go
Look through the turn to the farthest point along your intended path
Accelerate smoothly, make sure the signal cancels, and check traffic behind
Using a street, alley or driveway to reverse direction when you can't drive around the block: back into it (reverse) or pull into it and back out (forward).
Forward two-point turnabout: signal left, turn into the driveway as near the right side as possible, stop when the rear clears the curb, then signal right and back out, turning the wheel quickly all the way right.
Use a three-point turnabout (Y-turn) only on a two-lane road that is too narrow for a U-turn when you can't go around the block: pull right, turn hard left across, back up turning hard right, then drive forward turning hard left.
On a narrow two-lane residential street you pass your friend's house. There's no driveway handy and you can't go around the block, so a three-point turn fits. Check mirrors, traffic and blind spots before each of the three moves.
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.
When making a right turn, from which part of the lane should you turn?
The center of the lane
The left-most portion of the lane
After swinging wide to the left
The right-most portion of the lane
Answer: The right-most portion of the lane
Always turn right from the right-most portion of the lane, avoiding a wide swing to the left first.
