Approaching intersections safely — Tennessee Permit Test

Approaching intersections safely on the Tennessee permit test — 4 rules, each with the reason behind it and a question on it while it is fresh.

The rules

Under the left-right-left rule, look first to the left to make sure cross traffic is yielding, then to the right.

Cars from the left reach your path first, since they are in the near lane. That is the danger to check first.

Look first to the left to make sure cross traffic is yielding the right-of-way.

Tennessee Comprehensive Driver License Manual, p.52

Slow down before an intersection, drive at your slowest speed just before entering it, and speed up gradually as you cross.

The moment just before you enter is your last chance to stop for a car running the light. You want to be slowest then.

You should slow down before reaching the intersection, drive at your slowest speed just before entering the intersection and gradually increase your speed as you cross the intersection.

Tennessee Comprehensive Driver License Manual, p.52

Do not make last-minute lane changes as you start through an intersection.

Drivers beside you expect you to stay put. A sudden move across their lane in the intersection can cause a side crash.

Do NOT make last minute lane changes as you start through an intersection.

Tennessee Comprehensive Driver License Manual, p.52

It is illegal to block an intersection, whether or not it is marked with a Do Not Block sign.

A car stuck in the box after the light changes stops cross traffic. Ambulances and fire trucks can get trapped too.

It is always illegal to block an intersection, whether it is marked or not.

Tennessee Comprehensive Driver License Manual, p.53

On the test

Under the left-right-left rule, which way do you look first at an intersection?

To the left. Cars from the left reach your path first, since they are in the near lane. That is the danger to check first. Tennessee Comprehensive Driver License Manual, p.52: “Look first to the left to make sure cross traffic is yielding the right-of-way.”

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.

What it costs

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Where these come from

Every rule here is checked against Tennessee Comprehensive Driver License Manual, published by the Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security, and against the state code itself. Last checked 2026-10-03.