Ohio · Handbook chapter 5 · 6 min read

Ohio rules for starting, stopping and steering, where you must stop, turns and turn signals, turning on red, roundabouts, lane use, passing, railroad crossings, stopping for school buses and parking.

Why this chapter matters

Section 5 of the Digest holds many of the rules the test checks with numbers: 3 to 4 seconds, 100 feet, 4 and 8 o'clock, 15 and 50 feet at railroad crossings, 10 feet from a school bus, 12 inches from the curb, 20 feet from a crosswalk and 10 feet from a hydrant.

Starting, moving and stopping

• Start with your right foot on the brake and the selector in park.
• Move off smoothly: check ahead, to the sides and behind, signal, then press the accelerator gently with your heel on the floor.
• Stopping distance depends on your reaction time, speed, brakes and the road surface. Keep a 3 to 4 second gap to the car ahead (Section 8 recommends four seconds).

Where you must stop

• Behind the stop line or crosswalk at a STOP sign or red light, including before a legal turn on red.
• At a flashing red light, yielding to traffic that does not have to stop.
• Leaving an alley, driveway or private road in a business or residential area: stop at the sidewalk, or just before the road where there is no sidewalk.
• Before an intersection when there is no room for your car on the far side, even on a green light.
• For an approaching public safety vehicle with lights and siren: pull as far right as you can and stop until it passes. On a divided highway, traffic going the other way need not stop.

Steering and backing

• Hold the wheel at 4 and 8 o'clock, firm but gentle, to keep control and stay clear of the air bag.
• Before backing, check behind the car before you get in. Hold the wheel at 12 o'clock with your left hand, put your right arm on the passenger seat and look through the rear window. Cameras and mirrors do not show everything. Back slowly.

Intersections and turns

• At every intersection slow down and look left, right, then left again for cars, motorcycles, bicycles and pedestrians.
• Signal at least 100 feet before a turn, with the signal lever or a hand signal.
• Right turn: do not swing wide; turn from the right part of your lane into the right part of the new street.
• Left turn: yield to oncoming traffic; turn into the lane just right of the center line. On a green light, wait behind the line, or just past the stop bar if traffic is heavy, until there is a gap.
• In multiple turn lanes, stay in your lane through the turn.

Turning on red

• Right on red is allowed unless a sign forbids it. Stop completely and let all crossing traffic and pedestrians clear first.
• Left on red is allowed only when you turn from the far left lane of one one-way street into another, unless a sign forbids it.

Good habits

• When the light turns green, pause before going: others may run the light.
• Do not enter an intersection you cannot clear. Never block it.
• Do not pull out just because an approaching driver is signaling a turn. They may turn later, or have forgotten the signal.
• If you cannot see past a STOP sign, edge forward after stopping.

Roundabouts

• Traffic goes counterclockwise around a center island.
• Slow down, yield to traffic already in the circle, look left and enter when clear.
• Once in, keep moving: do not stop or change lanes.
• Signal and exit. First exit is a right turn, second is straight ahead, third is a left turn, fourth is a U-turn.

Lane use and lane changes

• Keep to the right half of the road unless passing, on a road of three or more marked lanes, on a one-way road, when directed by police or a sign, or when an obstruction forces you left (yield to oncoming traffic).
• On roads with four or more lanes, keep to the right lane; the lane next to the center is for passing and left turns.
• To change lanes, check mirrors and turn your head to check blind spots, signal, look again, then move and cancel the signal.
• On a freeway, use the acceleration lane to match speed and merge into a gap. To exit, move over early, keep your speed on the main road, then slow in the deceleration lane. Missed your exit? Take the next one. Median crossings are for emergency vehicles only.

Passing

• Check ahead and behind, signal, pass, and return only when you can see both headlights of the passed car in your rear-view mirror.
• When being passed, stay in your lane and keep a steady speed.
• Do not pass with oncoming traffic, on a curve or hill, at intersections, or before a railroad crossing or bridge. Never pass on the shoulder.

Railroad crossings

• Warning signs: the round yellow RR sign and the white X-shaped crossbuck. Some crossings also have flashing red lights and gates.
• When a train is coming, stop between 15 and 50 feet from the crossing. Wait until it has gone by and the signals stop.
• Never stop on the tracks. A crossing with a STOP sign means everyone stops.
• Buses carrying passengers for hire, school buses and vehicles carrying explosives or flammable liquids must always stop at crossings.

School buses

• Amber lights flash as the bus prepares to stop. You need not stop yet, but get ready.
• Red lights flash (and a stop arm may swing out) when it has stopped. You must stop even if there is no stop arm.
• On a road with fewer than four lanes, traffic from both directions stops at least 10 feet from the bus and waits until it moves or the driver signals you on.
• On a road with four or more lanes, only traffic going the same direction as the bus must stop.
• Bus drivers may report the plate number of a driver who passes illegally.

Parking

• Park facing the direction of traffic, parallel to and within 12 inches of the right curb. On a one-way street you may use either curb.
• Do not use a space marked for people with disabilities without a placard or accessible plate.
• Stopping, standing and parking are all banned on a sidewalk, across a driveway, inside an intersection or crosswalk or within 20 feet of one, within 10 feet of a hydrant, within one foot of another parked car, beside a car already parked at the curb (double parking), and anywhere signs forbid it.
• On a hill, turn your front wheels toward the curb side, shift to park, set the parking brake and switch off the engine.