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Difficulty: EasySpace Ahead and Following Distance

You are driving a 40-foot commercial vehicle at a speed of 35 mph on a clear, dry roadway. According to standard CDL safety guidelines, what is the minimum safe following distance you should maintain behind the vehicle ahead?

  1. A
    3 seconds
  2. 4 secondsAnswer
  3. C
    5 seconds
  4. D
    2 seconds

Answer

4 seconds
For commercial vehicles operating at speeds below 40 mph, the safe following distance formula requires 1 second for every 10 feet of vehicle length. For a 40-foot vehicle traveling at 35 mph, dividing 40 by 10 yields exactly 4 seconds of following distance.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Calculate base following time from vehicle length
4 seconds
The commercial vehicle rule specifies 1 second for every 10 feet of vehicle length (40 feet / 10 = 4 seconds).
2
Evaluate operating speed for additional buffer time
0 additional seconds
The vehicle is traveling at 35 mph, which is below the 40 mph threshold required to add an extra second.

Key Concept

CDL Safe Following Distance Formula
Estimated Time:45s
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Topics

Space Ahead and Following Distance

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