Question

Difficulty: HardDriving in Fog and Reduced Visibility

When visibility is severely reduced by dense fog and a driver must pull entirely off the paved roadway onto the shoulder to stop, leaving low-beam headlights and tail lights continuously illuminated is the correct safety procedure to alert approaching traffic.

Answer: Answer

Answer

The statement is False. Official DMV safety regulations dictate that when stopping off the roadway in severe fog, headlights and tail lights must be turned off and emergency flashers turned on to prevent trailing traffic from following the tail lights off the road into a collision.
The statement is false. Leaving headlights and tail lights illuminated while parked off the paved road in dense fog creates a severe safety hazard, as trailing motorists commonly mistake those lights for a moving vehicle in a travel lane and collide with the stopped car. Drivers should turn off all primary driving lights and engage hazard flashers.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the scenario conditions
The driver has pulled completely off the paved roadway onto the shoulder during dense fog.
Vehicle placement and visibility levels dictate the required lighting configuration under DMV safety rules.
2
Evaluate the risk of leaving regular driving lights illuminated while parked on the shoulder in fog
Approaching drivers in zero or low visibility tend to follow tail lights ahead, assuming they mark an open travel lane.
Illuminated tail lights on a parked shoulder vehicle mislead trailing traffic into driving off the road.
3
Determine the proper emergency lighting protocol
Turn off headlights, remove foot from the brake pedal to douse brake lights, and activate emergency hazard flashers.
Hazard flashers indicate a stopped hazard without signaling a moving path for trailing vehicles.

Key Concept

Off-Road Stopping and Lighting Management in Low Visibility
Estimated Time:1m 30s
Rate this question