Night driving — New York Permit Test
Night driving on the New York permit test — 7 rules, each with the reason behind it and a question on it while it is fresh.
The rules
About 90 percent of a driver's decisions are based on what they see, so at night they must use extra caution to make up for reduced visibility.
Driving is almost entirely a looking job. Night takes most of the looking away.
About 90% of your decisions are based on what you see.
Night driving is more dangerous because the distance a driver can see ahead or to the side is reduced, so they should drive slower than they would in daylight, especially on unfamiliar or narrow roads with many curves.
A short view needs a low speed. The two have to match or the stop comes too late.
Night driving is more dangerous because the distance you can see ahead or to the side is reduced.
Headlights cover about 350 feet ahead, so a driver should drive at a speed that lets them stop safely within that distance, which is called driving within the range of the headlights.
You cannot stop for something you have not seen yet. The beam sets the safe speed.
Your headlights cover about 350 feet ahead. It is important that you drive at a speed that allows you to stop safely within that distance.
The ability to see well at night decreases with age.
An older eye gathers less light. The same road is darker than it used to be.
You should also know that the ability to see well at night decreases with age.
Light from inside the vehicle or from street lights makes it harder to see the road ahead, so a driver should keep the interior roof light off and dim the dashboard lights.
The eye adjusts to the brightest thing it can see. A lit dashboard wins over the road.
Light from inside your vehicle or from street lights makes it harder for you to see the road ahead.
A dirty windshield increases glare from approaching headlights, so a driver should make sure their lights and windshield glass are clean for night driving.
Dust on the glass scatters oncoming light across the whole view.
Make sure your lights and windshield glass are clean for night driving.
To reduce glare from the lights of following vehicles a driver should switch their inside rear view mirror to the night position.
The mirror has a second setting for exactly this. It dims what is behind you.
To reduce glare from the lights of following vehicles, switch your inside rear view mirror to the “night” position.
On the test
What share of driving decisions are based on what a driver sees?
90 percent. Driving is almost entirely a looking job. Night takes most of the looking away. New York State Driver's Manual, p.62: “About 90% of your decisions are based on what you see.”
How this works
Most practice tests hand you a bank of questions and leave the manual somewhere else. This one puts them together.
You read one law and the reason behind it, then answer a question on that law while it is still fresh. Get it right and you move on; get it wrong and you have found the gap while it is cheap to fix, not on the morning of the exam.
Learning one rule at a time, and proving it immediately, is what turns a manual you skimmed into something you actually know — and it makes studying feel like getting somewhere rather than like waiting to find out.
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Where these come from
Every rule here is checked against New York State Driver's Manual, published by the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles, and against the state code itself. Last checked 2026-09-15.