Maine Lanes & Turns practice test

Practice lane markings, turns, passing and merging: 38 questions based on the Maine Driver's License Manual, 12 of them on Maine's own rules.

Key Maine facts: Lanes & Turns

  • A driver overtaking another vehicle must go by on the left with safe clearance and may not move back right until clear of it; overtaking by leaving the pavement is not allowed. Title 29-A, §2070, sub-§1
  • A passing vehicle must get back into the right lane before it is within 100 feet of an oncoming vehicle. Title 29-A, §2070, sub-§4
  • A driver may not drive on the left side of the road on the crest of a grade, on a curve with an obstructed view, within 100 feet of an intersection or railroad crossing, or near a bridge or tunnel with a blocked view. Title 29-A, §2070, sub-§5
  • A driver may not drive to the left of an unbroken painted center line in the driver's lane, except in an emergency. Title 29-A, §2070, sub-§5, ¶¶D-E
  • Passing on the right is allowed only when the vehicle ahead is turning or about to turn left, on a clear road with room for at least two lanes of traffic each way, or on a wide one-way road. Title 29-A, §2070, sub-§6

Sample Lanes & Turns questions

Where may a driver not make a U-turn?

  • On any quiet residential street at all
  • On a straight road with clear sight
  • On a curve hidden from cars 500 feet away
  • At a stop sign with nobody near it
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On a curve hidden from cars 500 feet away

The same applies near the crest of a grade.

Source: Maine Revised Statutes, Title 29-A, Title 29-A, §2072

On a two-way road, how should a driver approach a left turn?

  • From the middle of the intersection box
  • From the far right edge of the road ahead
  • From the shoulder, well before the turn
  • In the right half, nearest the center line
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In the right half, nearest the center line

After entering, leave to the right of the center line of the road being entered.

Source: Maine Revised Statutes, Title 29-A, Title 29-A, §2060, subs. 2-3

An unbroken painted center line is in your lane. May you drive to the left of it to pass?

  • Yes, at night
  • Yes, if the vehicle ahead is very slow
  • Yes, if no one is coming
  • No, except in an emergency
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No, except in an emergency

The law bars driving left of an unbroken line in your lane except in an emergency.

Source: Maine Revised Statutes, Title 29-A, Title 29-A, §2070, sub-§5, ¶¶D-E

Where should a Maine driver begin a right turn at an intersection?

  • Wide to the left, then sharply right
  • As close to the right curb as practicable
  • From the center of the road
  • From any lane that is open
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As close to the right curb as practicable

The turn is also made as close to the right edge as practicable.

Source: Maine Revised Statutes, Title 29-A, Title 29-A, §2060, sub-§1

When may a driver pass on the right in Maine?

  • Whenever the shoulder looks clear to you
  • When the vehicle ahead is turning left
  • When the vehicle ahead is moving slowly
  • On any two-lane road with no traffic
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When the vehicle ahead is turning left

Passing on the right is also allowed on roads wide enough for two lines of traffic in each direction.

Source: Maine Revised Statutes, Title 29-A, Title 29-A, §2070, sub-§6

Where may a Maine driver not drive to the left of center?

  • In the right lane of any two-lane rural road
  • On a straight, empty road at night time
  • Within 100 feet of an intersection
  • Near any driveway on a quiet rural road
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Within 100 feet of an intersection

The same applies at the crest of a hill and on curves with an obstructed view.

Source: Maine Revised Statutes, Title 29-A, Title 29-A, §2070, sub-§5

At what point must a passing driver return to the right lane?

  • After passing the next intersection ahead
  • Once within 10 feet of an approaching vehicle
  • Before getting within 100 feet of an oncoming car
  • Once within 500 feet of an approaching vehicle
Show the answer

Before getting within 100 feet of an oncoming car

The driver may not return until safely clear of the passed vehicle.

Source: Maine Revised Statutes, Title 29-A, Title 29-A, §2070, sub-§4

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About these questions

We wrote these practice questions from the facts in the Maine Driver's License Manual (Maine Driver's License Manual, 'Rev 4/24' on every page (126 PDF pages; file 'Maine Driver License Manual_2.pdf', 7.4 MB), the English manual linked from the Bureau of Motor Vehicles page 'Driver License Manual and Maine Motorist Handbook and Study Guide'; read 2026-11-10. www.maine.gov returns HTTP 403 to non-browser clients, so the same published file was fetched from www1.maine.gov with the project's honest user agent; the citations use the www.maine.gov address linked from the agency page. Page numbers cited are PDF pages (printed numbers run Section-page, for example PDF p. 8 is printed 1-3). The agency page also lists language editions whose file names say 'rev 05_2025'; the English edition found is Rev 4/24, so the owner may want to ask the BMV whether a newer English edition exists. The knowledge-test format comes from the BMV page 'Drivers License Exam' (fetched 2026-11-10). Every legal rule used in questions was checked against the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 29-A, on legislature.maine.gov (pages dated 10/05/2026 by the Revisor) and the BMV license pages. Out-of-date or inconsistent handbook statements and how they were handled: (1) child restraints (PDF pp. 42-43: safety seat under 55 pounds; 55 to 80 pounds and under 8 in a restraint; rear seat for age 12 and under) differ from 29-A M.R.S. 2081: a child under 2 must be in a rear-facing restraint, a child 2 or older under 55 pounds in a harness restraint, a child under 8, under 80 pounds and under 57 inches in a belt-positioning seat, and a child under 12 in the rear seat if possible; questions follow the statute; (2) phones (PDF pp. 7, 25, 27 say phones and handheld devices are prohibited and not to talk on the phone) are simplified: 29-A M.R.S. 2121 bans handheld use for everyone but allows hands-free mode for drivers 18 or older who hold neither a learner's permit nor an intermediate license, with $50 and $250 fines, and 2119 bans texting ($250 minimum); questions follow the statutes; (3) the refusal suspension is described only as 'up to six years' (PDF p. 31), which is the warning text of 2521(3); the periods are 275 days, 18 months, 4 years and 6 years for the first to fourth refusal (2521(6)) and one year for a first refusal with probable cause of a death; questions use the statute; (4) PDF p. 9 counts the 270-day intermediate restrictions from the road test, while 29-A M.R.S. 1311(2) counts them from license issuance; questions use the statute; (5) following distance is 4 seconds on PDF p. 85 but the statute (2066) only says reasonable and prudent, so the 4 seconds is asked only as the manual's advice; (6) PDF p. 81 gives about 158 feet of braking distance at 50 mph while the chart on PDF p. 82 gives 133 feet, and flares are placed 100 feet behind on PDF p. 92 but 200 to 300 feet on PDF p. 99; no question asks these distances; (7) parking distances from hydrants, crosswalks and fire station driveways and the 85-decibel sound-system rule (PDF p. 22) are described as municipal or manual rules and were not found in the 29-A sections read, so they are asked only as what the manual says and the hydrant variable is left open; the $100 disability-space fine on PDF p. 70 is out of date: 29-A M.R.S. 521(9-A) sets $200 to $500 for parking in a disability space without a plate or placard or in an access aisle, and the question follows the statute (independent check 2026-11-10); (8) the points system and the three-point course credit (PDF pp. 13-14) match the Secretary of State rule 29-250 C.M.R. ch. 1 linked from the BMV License Suspensions & Revocations page (warning at half of 12 points, suspension possible at 12 points within a year, points erased after one year, one three-point course credit per twelve months; checked 2026-11-10); violation-free credits were not checked and are not asked; the license validity of six years (four if 65 or older, PDF p. 11) was not checked against statute and is not asked. Material for commercial licenses and the CDL addendum on the same agency page was not used. edition) and from official sources on road signs. Every answer links to its source, so you can check it and read more.

DMV Decoded is an independent guide, not a government agency. This practice test is not connected to the Maine Bureau of Motor Vehicles (Secretary of State), and your actual test will have different questions. Study the handbook, and check the agency's website for current rules.