You are traveling along an ordinary two-way road of sufficient width. There is no obstruction, passing maneuver or other special lane arrangement. Where should you drive?
Correct answer: On the right half of the roadway.
New Hampshire requires right-half travel unless a listed exception applies. A clear opposing lane does not by itself create an exception.
Source: New Hampshire RSA 265:16, I, ordinary right-half rule and listed exceptions; official consolidated Chapter 265 HTML and displayed source history read October 1, 2026. ↗
A fallen branch blocks your side of a two-way road. Going around it would put you left of center, where an oncoming car is close enough to be a hazard. What should you do?
Correct answer: Yield to the oncoming car before using its side to get around the obstruction.
The obstruction exception does not grant priority over oncoming traffic. A driver using the unobstructed side must yield to vehicles properly traveling there that are close enough to be an immediate hazard.
Source: New Hampshire RSA 265:16, I(b), obstruction exception and immediate-hazard yielding duty; official consolidated Chapter 265 HTML and displayed source history read October 1, 2026. ↗
You are driving below the normal traffic flow on a multilane road. You are neither passing nor preparing for a left turn. Which lane is normally appropriate?
Correct answer: The available right-hand lane.
Traffic moving below the normal speed for the place and conditions must use the available right-hand lane or keep as close as practicable to the right edge. The statute preserves passing and left-turn preparation exceptions.
Source: New Hampshire RSA 265:16, II, slower-than-normal traffic and passing/left-turn exceptions; official consolidated Chapter 265 HTML and displayed source history read October 1, 2026. ↗
On a multilane road under ordinary safe conditions, you have stayed continuously in the left lane and are holding up other traffic traveling at or below the speed limit. No hazard makes that position reasonable. What should you do?
Correct answer: Use an appropriate lane to the right when safe instead of continuing to obstruct that traffic.
Section 265:16 IV prohibits continuous left-lane operation that impedes traffic traveling at or below the posted limit, unless the position is reasonable and prudent for actual or potential hazards. A safe lane change is still required.
Source: New Hampshire RSA 265:16, IV, continuous left-lane operation impeding traffic at or below the posted limit; hazard qualification; official consolidated Chapter 265 HTML and displayed source history read October 1, 2026. ↗
During a lawful pass on the left, your car has only just drawn alongside the front of the car you are passing. When may you return to the right in front of it?
Correct answer: After you have become safely clear of the overtaken car.
The passing driver must allow a safe distance and must be safely clear before returning to the right. Merely getting the front of your car ahead does not establish that clearance.
Source: New Hampshire RSA 265:18, I, safe passing distance and safe clearance before returning right; official consolidated Chapter 265 HTML and displayed source history read October 1, 2026. ↗
A car behind sounds an audible signal and is lawfully overtaking you on the left. What should you do while it passes?
Correct answer: Give way to the right and do not increase speed until it has completely passed.
The overtaken driver must give way to the right on the audible signal and must not increase speed until completely passed. Competing with the other vehicle prolongs the conflict.
Source: New Hampshire RSA 265:18, II, audible signal and overtaken driver's duties; official consolidated Chapter 265 HTML and displayed source history read October 1, 2026. ↗
A vehicle ahead is waiting to turn left. You could get around it on the right only by driving off the roadway. What is the lawful choice?
Correct answer: Wait rather than leave the roadway to make the pass.
A left-turning vehicle is a listed circumstance for passing on the right, but the pass must still be safe and may not be made by driving off the roadway.
Source: New Hampshire RSA 265:19, I and III, left-turning vehicle; safety and no-off-roadway limits; official consolidated Chapter 265 HTML and displayed source history read October 1, 2026. ↗
A road has unobstructed pavement wide enough for two lawful lines of traffic moving in your direction. Is a right-side pass automatically forbidden merely because the road also carries traffic in the opposite direction?
Correct answer: No; it may be made if the movement is safe and stays on the roadway.
New Hampshire's provision covers enough unobstructed pavement for two lawful lines moving in the passing driver's direction. It is not limited to one-way roads, but safety and the no-off-roadway condition still apply.
Source: New Hampshire RSA 265:19, II–III, sufficient unobstructed pavement for lawful same-direction traffic and safe movement; official consolidated Chapter 265 HTML and displayed source history read October 1, 2026. ↗
You would need an opposing lane for a pass, but cannot see far enough ahead to know whether the entire maneuver could finish without interfering with other traffic. What should you do?
Correct answer: Stay behind until the authorized pass can be completed within a sufficiently clear, visible distance.
A left-of-center pass requires a clearly visible, sufficiently traffic-free distance to finish without interfering with oncoming or overtaken vehicles. The absence of a visible car at one instant is not enough.
Source: New Hampshire RSA 265:20, First operative paragraph, visibility and sufficient oncoming-traffic clearance; official consolidated Chapter 265 HTML and displayed source history read October 1, 2026. ↗
You are otherwise lawfully using an opposing-traffic lane to pass. Which return requirement must you meet as an oncoming vehicle approaches?
Correct answer: Return to an authorized lane as soon as practicable and before coming within 200 feet of the oncoming vehicle.
The law requires an early return to an authorized lane and, for a pass using an opposing-traffic lane, completion before the approaching vehicle is within 200 feet. This boundary is not permission to start an unsafe pass.
Source: New Hampshire RSA 265:20, Second operative paragraph, return to an authorized lane; 200-foot oncoming boundary; official consolidated Chapter 265 HTML and displayed source history read October 1, 2026. ↗
On a two-way road, a crest blocks your view of oncoming vehicles close enough to create a hazard. May you enter the left half to pass the car ahead?
Correct answer: No; the hazardous obstruction of your view prohibits that movement.
The law prohibits left-side driving near a crest or curve when the obstructed view creates an oncoming-traffic hazard. The stated one-way-road exception does not apply here.
Source: New Hampshire RSA 265:21, I(a) and II, obstructed-view restriction and one-way exception; official consolidated Chapter 265 HTML and displayed source history read October 1, 2026. ↗
On an ordinary two-way road, you are 60 feet from an intersection. No traffic-control indication allows otherwise. May you move left of center to overtake a slow car at that point?
Correct answer: No; the left-side restriction applies within 100 feet of the intersection.
Section 265:21 I(b) prohibits this movement within 100 feet of or through an intersection or railroad crossing unless otherwise indicated. The scenario excludes both a contrary indication and the one-way exception.
Source: New Hampshire RSA 265:21, I(b) and II, 100-foot intersection/rail restriction unless otherwise indicated; one-way exception; official consolidated Chapter 265 HTML and displayed source history read October 1, 2026. ↗
