Driving Situations and Conditions: Reduced Visibility and the Yellow-on-Your-Left Rule, When Headlights Are Required, Low and High Beams, Night Driving, Fog, Inclement Weather, Snow and Ice, the Emergency Kit, Skidding, Hydroplaning, Highway-Railroad Crossings, Work Zone Safety and Its Colored Lights, Traffic Circles and Roundabouts, Interstate Entering, Exiting and Stopping, Funeral Processions and Slow-Moving Vehicles
Written for aiforu2 as the source for a practice-test bank and the on-device tutor for the Maryland MVA knowledge test. The facts follow the official manual; the wording is ours.
Source: Maryland Driver's Manual (MDOT MVA, December 2025), Section 5 "Driving Situations and Conditions" (pages 27–32).
Reduced visibility and headlights
Darkness, fog, heavy rain and snow are the usual causes of reduced visibility, which demands more concentration. Use the edge lines or the right side of the road as a guide, and remember that yellow markings belong on your left, never on your right, because yellow divides opposing traffic and marks the left edge, while white marks the right edge and divides same-direction lanes. Turn on your headlights whenever there is not enough light to see clearly at least 1,000 feet ahead, at night, in fog and in storms, and Maryland law requires headlights whenever you use your wipers in inclement weather. Use low beams in normal situations such as lit streets, in fog, rain and snow, and when entering tunnels or construction areas; use high beams on roads without streetlights, switching to low at least 500 feet before an oncoming vehicle and when following a vehicle 300 feet or less ahead.
Night, fog and weather
At night it is harder to judge distance and speed, and you can see only as far as your headlights reach; do not stare into oncoming headlights but look ahead or slightly right toward the edge of your lane, and increase your following distance. In fog, reduce speed, slow even more when you see lights ahead and be ready to stop quickly, pull completely off the road with the flashers on if it is too thick to drive, and use low beams only, plus fog lights if you have them. Wet roads cut traction, the grip that lets you start, stop and turn, and snow and ice cut it further; keep a much bigger gap, slow down, keep good tread, avoid slamming the brakes and pump them if you have no ABS, avoid jerking the wheel or changing speed suddenly, keep the wipers working and use headlights. Ramps and bridges freeze before roads, plowed roads refreeze at night, and black ice on asphalt is nearly invisible. Four-wheel drive still slides. On snow or ice, slow down (no speed is safe), clear all windows and lights, start very slowly and test the brakes gently, begin slowing long before intersections and turns, keep the gas tank and washer fluid full, and use chains, snow tires or radials on snow emergency routes when an emergency is declared. Keep flares, a flashlight and batteries, a first aid kit, a blanket, kitty litter or sand, and a small shovel and ice scraper in the car.
Skidding and hydroplaning
Sand, gravel, uneven surfaces, oil, speed and water all reduce traction and invite skids. In a skid, release whichever pedal you are using, steer in the direction you are skidding, look where you want to go, brake only after the tires grip again, and consider gentle acceleration if the rear wheels lose traction. Hydroplaning happens when speed and water lift the tires onto a sheet of water; prevent it with good tires and lower speed on wet roads, and if control fades, lift off the gas, do not brake, keep the vehicle straight and slow until control returns.
Railroad crossings
Trains cannot stop quickly. Expect buses, school buses and hazardous materials trucks to stop at every crossing; look for a train from either direction, since trains are closer and faster than they seem; never start across unless you can clear the tracks completely with room on the far side; get out and away from the tracks in an emergency and report it with the blue-and-white Emergency Notification System sign; treat lowered gates or flashing lights as a closed road and wait until they lift and stop flashing; and after a train passes, look both ways again, because another train may be coming on another track.
Work zones
Work zones, marked by signs and devices, may be fixed like a bridge job or mobile like a striping crew, and bring new patterns, lane shifts, temporary devices, narrow lanes, closures, drop-offs, short sight distance, detours and slow equipment merging back in. Orange is the work-zone color. Stay alert; flashing amber lights mean workers are present; obey posted limits, since speeding fines are much higher in work zones and higher still with workers present, and flashing blue lights mean speed cameras are active; flashing green lights mark highway maintenance vehicles; expect the unexpected including a full stop; minimize distractions; merge carefully without tailgating or needless lane changes; and obey the flagger.
Traffic circles
Roads entering a traffic circle carry yield signs: always yield to traffic already circling and to pedestrians in the crosswalk, reduce speed, keep to the right of the island, approach the yield line cautiously and wait for a gap while watching exiting vehicles, and enter without waiting if the circle is empty. In a multilane circle stay in your lane, signal right to exit, and move to the outside lane after you pass the exit before yours.
Interstates and limited-access highways
Limited-access highways have no intersections or lights and few entrances and exits; an interstate crosses state lines. Enter by the ramp and use the acceleration lane to match traffic without crossing the solid lines that divide the entrance from the highway; if you are slower than traffic, use the right lane. To exit, move right well ahead, begin slowing in the deceleration lane, and slow to the posted ramp speed; if you exit at the wrong place, continue off the ramp and find a way back, and never stop or back up on any part of the highway. You may not stop in moving lanes; stop on the shoulder only for a disabled vehicle or another emergency, with the flashers on, staying inside if you can, because walking along a highway is extremely dangerous.
Funeral processions and slow vehicles
In a funeral procession, turn on your headlights and hazard flashers so others yield, and you may go through a red signal with your lights on; other drivers must yield to the procession even on green until it has passed unless they can proceed without crossing its path. Slow-moving vehicles such as bicycles, horse-drawn vehicles and farm equipment may carry the slow-moving emblem meaning 25 mph or less; watch for them, adjust speed and position, pass only when safe, and use your emergency flashers while following one so drivers behind you are warned.
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