Space to cross or enter — Maine Permit Test

To cross traffic from a full stop, you need a gap of about half a block on city streets and about a full block on the highway.

Starting from zero takes time, and a car far off still arrives before you clear.

To get moving from a full stop, you need a gap that is:

To enter a lane of traffic from a stop, you need a gap of about two-thirds of a block in the city and about two blocks on the highway.

You need time to finish the turn and get up to the speed of the cars coming.

To enter a lane of existing traffic, you need a little more time to complete your turn and to get up to the speed of the other cars.

Stopping halfway across traffic is safe only when there is a median large enough to hold your car.

A car stopped across a lane with no median has its tail in the path of traffic.

Stopping halfway across is only safe when there is a median divider large enough to hold your car.

Even on a green light, do not start across if cars are blocking your way; if the light changes while you are in the intersection, you will block traffic.

A car stuck in the box when the light turns red blocks the cross traffic that now has the green.

Even if you have the green light, don't start across if there are cars blocking your way. If you are caught in the intersection when the light changes, you will block traffic.

A turn signal left on by mistake is especially likely on a motorcycle, because motorcycle signals are not always self-canceling.

A rider who has forgotten the blinker keeps coming straight at the driver who pulled out.

This is likely to happen with motorcycles because their signals aren’t always self-cancelling.

To cross traffic from a full stop on a city street, about how big a gap do you need?

About half a block. Starting from zero takes time, and a car far off still arrives before you clear. Maine Driver’s License Manual, p.89: “To get moving from a full stop, you need a gap that is:”