Kentucky · Handbook chapter 7 · 5 min read

Kentucky rules for signaling and turning, turnabouts, intersections, roundabouts, school and church buses, parking on hills and parallel parking, lane use, merging, exiting and passing.

Why this chapter matters

Most crashes happen where vehicles meet, turn or pass. This chapter covers everyday maneuvers, with numbers such as 100 feet, 500 feet, 200 feet and 3 feet.

Turning

• Look all around for signals, pedestrians and vehicles, and signal 100 feet before turning at an intersection.
• Get into the lane closest to the direction you want to go, and look through the turn.
• Right turns: turn from the right-most part of your lane without swinging wide.
• Left turns: turn from the left-most part of your lane and yield to oncoming traffic.
• Turn into the nearest lane. On a multi-lane street, turn left from the lane nearest the center and right from the lane nearest the curb. Change lanes only after the turn is finished.
• Missed your turn? Carry on to the next intersection and loop back from there.

Turnabouts

A turnabout uses a driveway or alley to reverse direction when you cannot drive around the block. Make sure your car can be seen for 500 feet in each direction, signal, back slowly into the driveway, then turn out into the proper lane. Practice it for the skills test.

Intersections

• Slow down and look for signals, cross traffic, pedestrians, bicyclists, the road surface and blind spots.
• Look left, right and left again before entering. When the light turns green, make sure the path is clear first.
• If buildings or parked cars block your view, edge forward slowly until you can see.
• Do not assume another driver will turn just because their signal is on.

Roundabouts

Traffic moves counterclockwise around a central island. Slow down, yield to traffic already in the circle, then signal and exit at your street.

School and church buses

When a school or church bus stops to load or unload with its stop arm and lights on, all traffic from either direction must stop and stay stopped until the bus has finished and is moving. The only exception is traffic going the other way on a road with four or more lanes divided by a raised barrier or unpaved median.

Parking

• Park in designated areas, as far from traffic as possible and close to the curb.
• Watch for signs and painted curbs that limit parking. Parking in a disabled space without a permit is punishable by a fine; permits come from the County Clerk.
• On a hill, turn your wheels so the car would hit the curb if it rolled. With no curb, turn them so it would roll off the road.
• Parallel parking: back in slowly until your front bumper lines up with the rear bumper of the car you are parking behind, then straighten. To leave, move into the lane when your door post clears the rear bumper of the car ahead.
• Angle and perpendicular spaces: back straight out until your front bumper clears the car beside you before turning.
• Set the parking brake, put the car in park, turn off the engine and take the key, and lock it. Get out on the curb side when you can.

Using lanes

• With three or more lanes one way, the middle lanes are for through traffic, the left lane for passing or left turns, and the right lane for slower or entering traffic.
• On two-lane-each-way roads, the right lane usually flows best and the left lane is for passing. Staying in the left lane on a limited access highway is illegal.
• Before changing lanes, check mirrors and look over your shoulder into your blind spot, then signal.
• Once you are already in the intersection when the light changes, carry on through; last-second changes cause crashes.

Entering and leaving highways

• Use the acceleration lane to reach traffic speed, then merge into a gap. Traffic already on the highway has the right of way.
• To exit, move into the exit lane early, keep your speed on the main road, then slow down in the deceleration lane.

Passing

• Pass on the left. Pass on the right only when it is safe, and never by driving off the pavement unless the vehicle you are passing has stopped.
• Do not pass where a solid line is on your side.
• Finish every pass before a no passing zone begins and before you come within 200 feet of an oncoming vehicle.
• Never start a pass near a hill or curve; treat them as hiding an oncoming car. Avoid passing at intersections, school zones and busy areas.
• Return to your lane when you can see the passed vehicle in your mirror.
• Bicycles and electric scooters: with one lane your way, leave at least 3 feet. You may cross the center line, even in a no-passing zone, if the way is clear far enough.
• Being passed: stay in your lane and give way to the right.