Roadwise States West Virginia Driving lessons Headlights and driving at night West Virginia driving lesson · Sharing the Road
Headlights and driving at night A 3-minute lesson from the West Virginia course. Read the rules and examples, follow the handbook page references, and check your understanding before you move on.
Read time 3 minutes
Course unit Sharing the Road
Checkpoint questions 6
Source pages 61, 72 Fewer miles are driven at night, yet the fatal crash rate at night is three (3) times higher than in daytime. Use your lights correctly, dim them for others, and never out-drive what your headlights show you.
500 feet Dim high beams within this distance of an approaching vehicle
Handbook p. 61 ↗ 200 feet Dim high beams within this distance of a vehicle you are following
Handbook p. 61 ↗ Know the rule
Turn on headlights from sunset to sunrise, and in fog, smoke, rain, or any time people and vehicles can't be seen clearly at 500 feet. If you have trouble seeing others, they likely can't see you.
Handbook p. 61 ↗ Know the rule
Use headlights, not just parking lights, when it starts getting dark or visibility is impaired. Use parking lights only when parked.
Handbook p. 72 ↗ Know the rule
Dim your lights on well-lit streets, and use low beams in fog; high beams reflect light back into your eyes.
Handbook p. 61 ↗ Know the rule
Looking into oncoming headlights causes momentary blindness. Slow down, keep to the right of your lane, and look toward the right edge of the road.
Handbook p. 72 ↗ Over-driving your headlights Driving too fast to stop safely within the distance your headlights clearly light up.
Handbook p. 72 ↗ Know the rule
Make sure you can stop within the area lit by your headlights, and keep headlights and taillights adjusted and clean.
Handbook p. 61 ↗ Know the rule
Too much light is a hazard too: driving east at sunrise or west at sunset calls for your visor, sunglasses, less speed and more alertness.
Handbook p. 72 ↗ Put it into practice
On a dark two-lane road you have your high beams on and see headlights coming over a rise about a quarter mile ahead. Switch to low beams no later than 500 feet from the oncoming car, and look to the right edge of the road as it passes.
A useful reminder 500 feet for oncoming, 200 feet for following. Oncoming is the bigger number.
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.
Within how many feet of an approaching vehicle must you dim your high-beam headlights? 200 feet 1,000 feet 500 feet 100 feet Answer: 500 feet
You must dim your headlights within 500 feet of an oncoming vehicle.
Handbook p. 61 ↗ Within how many feet of the vehicle ahead of you must you dim your headlights when following? 500 feet 200 feet 100 feet 300 feet Answer: 200 feet
You must dim your headlights within 200 feet of the vehicle you are following, less than the 500 feet for oncoming traffic.
Handbook p. 61 ↗ When must you turn on your headlights, besides sunset to sunrise? Any time visibility is impaired, such as fog, smoke, or rain Only when another car flashes its lights at you Only when driving above 45 mph Only inside a construction zone Answer: Any time visibility is impaired, such as fog, smoke, or rain
Headlights must be on from sunset to sunrise and any time visibility is impaired by fog, smoke, or rain.
Handbook p. 61 ↗ What should drivers do to avoid glare from an oncoming vehicle's headlights at night? Stare directly at the oncoming headlights Look toward the right edge of the road Turn on their high beams to compensate Look toward the center line Answer: Look toward the right edge of the road
Looking toward the right edge of the road helps avoid the momentary blindness caused by oncoming headlight glare.
Handbook p. 72 ↗ What does the handbook say the fatal crash rate is for night driving compared to day driving? About the same About three times greater About half as much About ten times greater Answer: About three times greater
Despite fewer miles driven at night, the fatal crash rate is about three times greater than during the day.
Handbook p. 61 ↗ At dusk it is acceptable to drive with only your parking lights on instead of your headlights. True False Answer: False
When it begins to get dark, the law requires headlights, not just parking lights; parking lights are only for when you are parked.
Handbook p. 72 ↗ Previous lesson Sharing the road with trucks Next lesson Farm vehicles, riders, joggers, children and disabled drivers About the source Roadwise’s West Virginia course uses the driver handbook edition supplied with this study pack. This lesson cites source pages 61, 72. The linked PDF is a third-party mirror of the handbook, rather than a government-hosted page.
Open the handbook source PDF · View the source edition
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