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Pennsylvania DMV Permit practice questions and answers
20 free questions from our 300-question Pennsylvania DMV Permit bank, each with the correct answer, explanation, and source note. Official format: 18 questions · 15 correct (83%) to pass · you can miss only 3.
Alcohol drugs
1. For drivers 21 and older in Pennsylvania, the per se DUI blood alcohol limit is:
Answer: A. At 0.08% BAC or higher, a driver 21 or older is per se guilty of driving under the influence — no other proof of impairment needed. Lower levels still support charges when ability is impaired. Because impairment begins with the first drink, the only safe choice is a sober ride planned before drinking starts.
Source: PA Driver's Manual — Driving Record & Alcohol — Alcohol and the Law
Intersections turns
2. At an all-way stop, if two vehicles arrive at the same time, who goes first?
Answer: B. When arrival is simultaneous at an all-way stop, the driver on the right has the right-of-way. Size, impatience, and signaling do not change that rule. If you arrived clearly first, you proceed first. Take turns visibly and never assume the other driver will yield correctly.
Source: PA Driver's Manual — Learning to Drive — Intersections and Right-of-Way
Licensing gdl
3. To get a Pennsylvania learner's permit you must be at least 16 and:
Answer: B. Applicants 16 and older complete the Non-Commercial Learner's Permit Application (DL-180) — plus parental-consent form DL-180TD under 18 — then pass vision and knowledge tests. The permit is valid for one year of supervised practice. Age alone is not enough; paperwork and both tests are equally required.
Source: PA Driver's Manual — Chapter 1: Testing — Learner's Permit
Parking
4. When parking downhill next to a curb, you should turn your front wheels:
Answer: C. Park downhill with the front wheels turned toward the curb so a rolling vehicle is caught by the curb rather than rolling into traffic. Uphill with a curb, angle them away so a rollback wedges the tire. Always set the parking brake — Pittsburgh's grades punish every skipped step.
Source: PA Driver's Manual — Learning to Drive — Parking on Hills
Passing schoolbus
5. Before passing on a two-lane road, you must be sure:
Answer: C. Legal passing needs all three: a permitted zone, full sight distance past hills and curves, and room to complete the pass and return before oncoming conflict. Signal, pass decisively without exceeding the limit, and return only when you see both headlights of the passed vehicle in your mirror.
Source: PA Driver's Manual — Learning to Drive — Passing
Road signs
6. An octagonal red sign always means what?
Answer: A. An octagon is reserved for one meaning: stop. Bring the vehicle to a complete halt at the limit line or before entering the intersection, then proceed only when safe. Other shapes carry different jobs — a triangle yields, a diamond warns — so shape alone is a reliable clue when paint is faded or snow-covered.
Source: PA Driver's Manual — Signs, Signals and Pavement Markings — Regulatory signs
Sharing road
7. A school bus with flashing red lights is stopped ahead on an undivided road. You must:
Answer: B. A school bus stopped with red lights flashing and its stop arm extended requires traffic from both directions to stop at least 10 feet away. The manual says to remain stopped until the red lights stop flashing, the stop arm is withdrawn, and the children have reached a safe place. Rolling past risks a child's life and brings a 60-day suspension, five points and a fine.
Source: PA Driver's Manual — Sharing the Road — School Buses
Special conditions
8. When you see a flagger paddle showing SLOW/STOP in a work zone, you must:
Answer: B. Flaggers replace signal heads with human control: watch the paddle, stop or proceed exactly as directed. Pennsylvania doubles speeding fines in active work zones. Their authority keeps crews alive where lights are not installed — compliance is never optional even when no police car is visible.
Source: PA Driver's Manual — Special Conditions — Work Zones
Speed space
9. The Pennsylvania maximum speed limit is 70 mph unless otherwise posted, and you must:
Answer: D. Seventy is the statewide maximum for ideal conditions, and posted limits override it in both directions: urban districts, school zones and interstates carry their own numbers. Rain, snow, fog, congestion and work zones all demand slower speeds, and you can be ticketed for driving too fast for conditions even below the posted number. The limit caps speed; conditions dictate the safe one.
Source: PA Driver's Manual — Learning to Drive — Speed Limits
Traffic signals markings
10. A steady yellow traffic light means:
Answer: A. Yellow warns the green phase is ending: stop if you can do so safely, and proceed only when stopping would be unsafe or you already entered. It is not an extension of green. Racing yellows trains you into red-light running, and the seconds saved never justify the angle-crash risk.
Source: PA Driver's Manual — Signs, Signals and Pavement Markings — Traffic Signals
Alcohol drugs
11. Under Pennsylvania law, a driver under 21 with any measurable alcohol faces:
Answer: B. Pennsylvania holds under-21 drivers to zero tolerance: a BAC of .02 or higher means DUI, punished from the High Rate table with jail from two days to six months, a full year of license suspension and a $500 to $5,000 fine. For young drivers any alcohol plus a car means losing the privilege to drive. The strict standard reflects how inexperience and impairment combine lethally.
Source: PA Driver's Manual — Driving Record & Alcohol — Alcohol and the Law
Intersections turns
12. Before turning left at a green light, you should:
Answer: C. A left turn is allowed only when you can complete it without conflicting with oncoming vehicles, cyclists, or pedestrians. Signal early, position safely, wait for a clear gap, and never assume oncoming traffic will slow. A green light permits the turn but gives no priority over those already lawfully in the intersection.
Source: PA Driver's Manual — Learning to Drive — Turning
Licensing gdl
13. If you fail the Pennsylvania knowledge test, you may:
Answer: C. PennDOT permits a knowledge-test retake the following business day — use the interval to study the sections you missed rather than rushing back. The test must be passed before any learner's permit issues. Repeated failures signal unread manual chapters, not bad luck.
Source: PA Driver's Manual — Chapter 1: Testing — Knowledge Test
Parking
14. Before opening your door into traffic after parking, you must:
Answer: D. Dooring injures cyclists and motorcyclists who cannot anticipate a sudden steel wall. Shoulder-check before every traffic-side exit, open slowly, and step out only when clear. Your door's swing is your responsibility — a moment's check prevents injuries no apology can undo.
Source: PA Driver's Manual — Learning to Drive — Parking
Passing schoolbus
15. When being passed by another vehicle, you should:
Answer: B. Help the passer complete safely: maintain or ease speed, hold your lane right, and never accelerate to block. Competing with a passing car creates a three-wide disaster with oncoming traffic. Courtesy here is survival — the pass ends quickest when you cooperate.
Source: PA Driver's Manual — Learning to Drive — Passing
Road signs
16. A sign shaped like an inverted triangle (point down) tells you to:
Answer: C. The upside-down triangle is the yield sign. Slow down, give the right-of-way to vehicles and pedestrians in or approaching the intersection, and stop only if needed. It is the only standard sign with this shape, so even when the legend is unreadable the outline still communicates yield rather than stop.
Source: PA Driver's Manual — Signs, Signals and Pavement Markings — Regulatory signs
Sharing road
17. When passing a cyclist with no bike lane, you should:
Answer: D. Cyclists hold the same lane rights as motor vehicles, and the manual's safe-passing law requires at least four feet of clearance when you pass a bicycle — crossing the double yellow line is allowed when needed to keep that space. Pass only with generous clearance, since wobble, gusts and potholes move riders sideways without warning, then return without cutting back sharply.
Source: PA Driver's Manual — Sharing the Road — Bicycles
Special conditions
18. If your vehicle begins to hydroplane, you should:
Answer: A. Hydroplaning means tires ride on water, not pavement: release the accelerator gently, keep the wheel straight, and avoid braking or sharp steering until grip returns. Sudden inputs spin the car once tires reconnect. Prevention works best — slow before standing water and never use cruise control in heavy rain.
Source: PA Driver's Manual — Special Conditions — Rain and Flooding
Speed space
19. Pennsylvania school zones commonly post 15 mph limits that apply:
Answer: B. Flashing school-zone limits activate the reduced maximum while lights flash and during posted hours — outside activation the normal limit resumes unless other signs say otherwise. Slow early so you reach the posted speed before the zone, scan both sides continuously, and never pass a vehicle stopped for children.
Source: PA Driver's Manual — Learning to Drive — Speed Limits
Traffic signals markings
20. A solid yellow center line on your side generally means:
Answer: C. A solid yellow line on your side restricts crossing to pass; double solid yellow prohibits passing for both directions. A broken yellow on your side allows passing only when safe. Yellow divides opposing flows while white divides same-direction lanes — color grammar every driver must read instantly.
Source: PA Driver's Manual — Signs, Signals and Pavement Markings — Pavement Markings
That’s the free set. The full bank has 300.
More original practice questions across the listed topics, a 18-question timed benchmark, and saved mistake review. Published PennDOT standard: 15 of 18 correct on the knowledge test. A failed test may be retaken the following business day. One payment of $8.99, yours forever.