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Question

Difficulty: MediumEvasive Steering and Avoiding Collisions

A flatbed transport ahead sheds a large piece of industrial machinery directly into your travel lane, leaving too little distance to bring your commercial vehicle to a complete halt. An open, paved shoulder is accessible on the right. Which of the following describes the proper collision-avoidance maneuver to execute?

  1. A
    Apply maximum service brake pressure while simultaneously steering sharply onto the right shoulder to maximize total deceleration during the turn.
  2. Steer firmly onto the clear right shoulder without applying the brakes during the turn, then counter-steer immediately to stabilize vehicle direction.Answer
  3. C
    Rotate the steering wheel more than a full half-turn (180 degrees) into the escape path and hold that steering angle until the vehicle stops.
  4. D
    Remain in the travel lane and rely strictly on straight-line emergency braking, assuming braking distance alone determines total stopping ability.

Answer

Steer firmly onto the clear right shoulder without applying the brakes during the turn, then counter-steer immediately to stabilize vehicle direction.
Steering around a sudden hazard onto an open right shoulder without braking while turning, followed immediately by counter-steering, is the standard CDL collision-avoidance technique. A commercial vehicle can almost always turn faster than it can stop, and keeping off the brake ensures steer tires have full traction to turn smoothly without skidding.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Assess the emergency path and recognize that stopping distance is insufficient.
Identify that steering away from the obstacle is the only viable maneuver to prevent a collision.
At highway speeds, a commercial motor vehicle can be steered around an obstruction in less distance than it takes to come to a complete stop.
2
Execute evasive steering to the right without applying the service brakes.
Front steer tires maintain maximum lateral traction to direct the vehicle onto the clear shoulder.
Applying the brakes during an abrupt steering maneuver easily locks wheels, inducing severe understeer skids, jackknifing, or rollover.
3
Counter-steer to the left as soon as the vehicle has cleared the obstruction.
The vehicle straightens out and stabilizes within the shoulder/lane path rather than rolling over or spinning out.
Counter-steering is essential to arrest lateral momentum and prevent overshooting the shoulder or losing directional control.

Key Concept

Evasive steering mechanics and counter-steer stabilization without braking during turns
Estimated Time:1m 0s
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Topics

Evasive Steering and Avoiding Collisions

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