West Virginia Right-of-Way practice test

Practice who goes first at intersections, crosswalks and roundabouts: 24 questions based on the West Virginia Driver's Licensing Handbook, 14 of them on West Virginia's own rules.

Key West Virginia facts: Right-of-Way

  • Drivers meeting or overtaking a school bus from either direction must stop before reaching it when it is stopped to load or unload children with its flashing warning lights on, and may not go until the bus moves, the bus driver signals them on, or the lights go off. This applies on streets, highways, parking lots, private roads and driveways. W. Va. Code §17C-12-7(a); handbook School Bus Rules, PDF p. 60
  • Passing a stopped school bus is a misdemeanor: a first offense brings a fine of $500 to $1,000, up to six months in jail, or both; a second, $1,000 to $1,500 and/or up to six months; a third, a $2,000 fine and 48 hours to six months in jail. W. Va. Code §17C-12-7(b)
  • On conviction for passing a stopped school bus, the license is suspended for 60 days for a first offense, 180 days for a second and one year for a third or later. W. Va. Code §17C-12-7(e)
  • A driver approaching an intersection yields to a vehicle already in it from another road; when two vehicles enter from different roads at about the same time, the driver on the left yields to the one on the right. W. Va. Code §17C-9-1; handbook Right-of-Way, PDF p. 59
  • A driver entering or crossing a highway from a private road or driveway must yield to all vehicles approaching on the highway. W. Va. Code §17C-9-4; handbook PDF p. 59

Sample Right-of-Way questions

You are pulling out of a private driveway onto a highway. Whom must you yield to?

  • No one, as long as you signal first
  • Only trucks and buses on the highway
  • All vehicles approaching on the highway
  • Only vehicles coming from your left
Show the answer

All vehicles approaching on the highway

A driver entering a highway from a private road or driveway must yield to every vehicle approaching on the highway.

Source: West Virginia Code §17C-9-4, W. Va. Code §17C-9-4; handbook PDF p. 59

How long is the license suspended for a first conviction of illegally passing a stopped school bus?

  • 10 days
  • One year
  • 60 days
  • 30 days
Show the answer

60 days

The suspension is 60 days for a first offense, 180 days for a second and one year for a third.

Source: West Virginia Code §17C-12-7, W. Va. Code §17C-12-7(e)

A school bus is unloading children in a school parking lot with its warning lights flashing. Must you stop?

  • Only during school hours
  • Yes, the rule applies there too
  • No, only on public roads
  • Only if you are behind it
Show the answer

Yes, the rule applies there too

The stop rule applies wherever the bus is loading or unloading, including parking lots, private roads and driveways.

Source: West Virginia Code §17C-12-7, W. Va. Code §17C-12-7(a); handbook School Bus Rules, PDF p. 60

An ambulance with a siren and flashing lights approaches. Where should you stop?

  • In the left lane, next to the center line
  • At the right edge, clear of the intersection
  • Wherever you are, without leaving your lane
  • In the middle of the intersection you're in
Show the answer

At the right edge, clear of the intersection

Yield and pull as far right as you can, next to the curb or edge and out of any intersection, then stop until it passes.

Source: West Virginia Code §17C-9-5, W. Va. Code §17C-9-5(a); handbook PDF p. 59

A fire truck answering an alarm passes you. How close behind it may you follow?

  • No closer than 100 feet
  • No closer than 1,000 feet
  • No closer than 200 feet
  • No closer than 500 feet
Show the answer

No closer than 500 feet

Drivers not on official business may not follow such a vehicle closer than 500 feet or park in the block where it has stopped.

Source: West Virginia Code §17C-14-9, W. Va. Code §17C-14-9(a)

You and another driver reach an uncontrolled intersection at about the same time. The other car is on your right. Who yields?

  • Whoever is turning
  • The other driver
  • Whoever is going faster
  • You do
Show the answer

You do

When two vehicles enter from different roads at about the same time, the driver on the left yields to the vehicle on the right.

Source: West Virginia Code §17C-9-1, W. Va. Code §17C-9-1; handbook Right-of-Way, PDF p. 59

On a four-lane highway, you approach a car stopped on the shoulder with its hazard lights flashing. What does the law require?

  • Nothing, it is not an emergency vehicle
  • Sound your horn as you pass
  • Stop behind it until it moves
  • Move to a lane not next to it if safe
Show the answer

Move to a lane not next to it if safe

The move-over law covers any stationary vehicle showing emergency flashers or hazard lights, flares or a reflective warning sign.

Source: West Virginia Code §17C-14-9a, W. Va. Code §17C-14-9a(a)

What fine range applies to a first conviction for passing a stopped school bus with its warning lights on?

  • $2,000 to $5,000
  • $500 to $1,000
  • $100 to $250
  • $50 to $100
Show the answer

$500 to $1,000

A first offense brings a fine of $500 to $1,000, up to six months in jail, or both.

Source: West Virginia Code §17C-12-7, W. Va. Code §17C-12-7(b)

A driver violates the move-over law and causes property damage. What license penalty follows?

  • No license penalty
  • A two-year suspension
  • A 90-day suspension
  • Two points only
Show the answer

A 90-day suspension

Property damage brings a 90-day suspension, injury six months and death two years, on top of a fine of up to $500 or jail of up to 60 days.

Source: West Virginia Code §17C-14-9a, W. Va. Code §17C-14-9a(b)

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About these questions

We wrote these practice questions from the facts in the West Virginia Driver's Licensing Handbook (Driver's Licensing Handbook, cover dated 'Revised 07/2026' (Drivers_Licensing_Handbook.pdf on webapps.transportation.wv.gov, 90 PDF pages, PDF created 2026-08-04; the file linked from the DMV's Driver's Licensing Handbooks page, dmv.wv.gov/driver-services/drivers/drivers-licensing-handbooks; the older 'Procedures on Driver's Licenses' page still links a 07/2022 web version, which was not used), read 2026-11-10. Page numbers cited are PDF pages; the printed page number is the PDF page minus 10 (PDF p. 34 = printed p. 24). Many pages use embedded fonts whose text extracts as shifted glyph codes; the text in sources/WV/handbook.txt was decoded by shifting those codes back, and some closing parentheses are lost, but the wording is otherwise intact. Every legal rule used in questions was checked against the West Virginia Code on code.wvlegislature.gov (read 2026-11-10; section texts saved in sources/WV/code_*.txt), and questions follow the statute. Out-of-date or inconsistent handbook statements and how they were handled: (1) distracted driving (PDF pp. 27-28) describes a hands-free rule with fines of $100, $200 and $300 plus three points; §17C-14-15 as amended in 2023 bans holding or supporting a device and sets fines of up to $100, up to $200 and, for a third conviction within 24 months, up to $350 with three points and a possible 90-day suspension; questions use the statute; (2) the DUI penalty chart (PDF p. 32) is out of date: §17C-5-2 (amended through the 2026 session; the only 2026 amendment, HB 4712, 'Baylea's Law', Acts 2026 ch. 103, took effect June 12, 2026 per the Legislature's bill status page and changes only the felony for deliberate-disregard DUI causing death in subsection (b)(1), which no question tests) sets revocation of six months for a first DUI under 0.15 (chart: 15 days), one year at 0.15 or more (chart: 45 days), one year with a passenger under 16 (chart: 60 days), 10 years for a second offense (chart: 1 year), a felony of two to five years for a third (chart: 1 to 3 years), and for drivers under 21 at 0.02 to under 0.08 a 60-day suspension for a first offense and one year or until 21 for a second (chart: 30 days; 60 days or until 18); questions use the statute and do not test the injury and death tiers; (3) under-21 alcohol: PDF pp. 31 and 32 describe zero tolerance for any measurable alcohol, but the definitions (PDF p. 9) and §17C-5-2(j) set the under-21 offense at 0.02 percent; the no-measurable-alcohol rule is used only for Level 1 and Level 2 GDL holders (§17B-2-3a); (4) refusal (PDF p. 32: revocation for one year and up to life; PDF p. 10: at least one year): §17C-5-7a(e) revokes, after a court finding, for one year or 45 days plus a year of test and lock for a first refusal, 10 years after one earlier refusal revocation and life after more; §17C-5-4(e) warns of at least 45 days and up to life; refusing only a blood test cannot cause revocation (§17C-5-4(d)); questions use the statute; (5) crash reporting: PDF p. 26 says report within five days, but §17C-4-6 requires immediate notice by the quickest means for injury, death or apparent damage of $1,000 or more; questions use the statute; (6) the no-passing list (PDF p. 59) bans passing within 100 feet of a bridge, viaduct, tunnel or underpass; §17C-7-6(a)(3) applies only when the view is obstructed, so no question states the flat bridge rule; (7) following distance: the three-to-four second rule (PDF pp. 57, 61) conflicts with the truck safety chart's two-second rule in dry conditions (PDF p. 63), so following_seconds is left open; (8) the 70 mph interstate maximum (PDF p. 52) is not in §17C-6-1, which only says interstate limits may not be below 55 mph; the 70 mph question cites the handbook; (9) the move-over law (§17C-14-9a: lane change or 15/25 mph for any stationary vehicle with emergency, amber or hazard lights, flares or a warning sign) is missing from the handbook; questions cite the statute; (10) the fee chart (PDF p. 25) lists a $5.00 Level 1 permit fee while PDF p. 20 and §17B-2-3a(c)(1)(D) give $7.50; not tested. Rules matched between handbook and statute: GDL levels (§17B-2-3a), school zone 15 mph and 125 feet (§17C-6-1), parking distances (§17C-13-3), school bus stop and first-offense fine (§17C-12-7), seat belts (§17C-15-49), child seats (§17C-15-46), dimming at 500 and 200 feet (§17C-15-21), insurance minimums (§17D-4-2), biennial inspection (§17C-16-4). 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 West Virginia Division of Motor Vehicles, and your actual test will have different questions. Study the handbook, and check the agency's website for current rules.