How to pass on an open highway — California Permit Test

To pass on an open highway, signal that you plan to pass, look over your shoulder to check your blind spots, then move into the passing lane.

The shoulder check is what finds the car that started passing you a second earlier.

Signal that you plan on passing.

Once in the passing lane, speed up to pass the vehicle, then signal and return to your original lane.

Sitting alongside for miles leaves you in a blind spot with a closed door on either side.

Speed up to pass the vehicle.

You may pass on the right only where an open highway has two or more lanes going your direction, where the driver ahead is turning left, or on a one-way street.

Drivers watch their left mirror for overtakers, so a pass on the right is the one they miss.

An open highway has two or more lanes going in your direction.

Never pass on the left if the driver ahead is signaling a left turn.

They are about to cross the very lane you would be passing through.

Never pass on the left if the driver is signaling a left turn.

Never drive off the paved or main-traveled part of the road to pass.

The shoulder is soft, unswept and full of the things that come off other cars.

Never drive off the paved or main-traveled part of the road to pass.

If a vehicle is passing you or signals that it plans to, let it pass and keep your lane position and your speed.

Speeding up strands them alongside, with oncoming traffic arriving and nowhere to tuck back in.

If a vehicle is passing you or signals that they plan on passing, allow the vehicle to pass.

What do you do after signaling that you plan to pass?

Look over your shoulder at the blind spots. The shoulder check is what finds the car that started passing you a second earlier. California Driver’s Handbook, p.25: “Signal that you plan on passing.”