Advocacy & Safety - Is the DMV a bicycle advocacy group?

I stopped by the DMV to renew my driver's license a few days ago because I had to take the written test. Here's the question I received for number 9:

http://img527.imageshack.us/img527/6981/86424909.jpg

Does this count as bicycle advocacy?

I think it is.

Worded so it still shows the bias. How about a simple answer such as "Cyclist are entitled to use of public roads."

I wonder how many choose #2 and where not pointed out the mistake yet passed?

Worded so it still shows the bias. How about a simple answer such as "Cyclist are entitled to use of public roads."

Yeah, it could be a little more bicycle friendly, couldn't it?

Each answer plays to what different people think.

They can get it wrong and still pass the test, can't they?

It looks more like a survey than a test.

Well it is the Department of MOTOR Vehicles... :rolleyes:

Worded so it still shows the bias. How about a simple answer such as "Cyclist are entitled to use of public roads."

To be fair to the DMV the entire test was poorly worded. The test was definitely not written by professional psychometricians; it appears that the test was written by bureaucrats who copied and pasted from the drivers manual.

To be fair to the DMV the entire test was poorly worded. The test was definitely not written by professional psychometricians; it appears that the test was written by bureaucrats who copied and pasted from the drivers manual.

Yup, which just goes to show that our driver training still sucks balls.

Worded so it still shows the bias.

My Lord you're touchy.

It's not advocacy, it's a statement of fact, that all. Unfortunately, that question isn't given under a pass/fail situation, as it should be; that can be one of the 'acceptable' wrong answers.

Yeah -- DMV sucks.

Our Provincial automotive insurer is also involved in licensing drivers and in the manual for people training to obtain a license, the rights and responsibilities of cyclists are clearly laid out.

Cyclists commute to work as well as ride for recreation, so you can expect to see them on the road at any time of the day or night. Be aware that bicycle riders have the same rights and responsibilities on
the road as drivers. Observe carefully at all times. Cyclists, like pedestrians, are vulnerable.

Make sure you shoulder check before you:

• open your door to get out of your vehicle, and check your side mirror as well. One of the most common causes of crashes involving cyclists is drivers who swing their doors open without checking.
• pull away from the curb
• move to the right

Pay attention at night — Observe carefully, especially for bicycles coming in from side streets.

Be careful when passing — Before you pass another vehicle, make sure you check for oncoming cyclists and cyclists ahead of the vehicle you are passing.

Scan at intersections — Be especially careful to observe at intersections

Cyclists follow the same rules and regulations as drivers:

• Yield to cyclists as you would to any other vehicle. If you have the right-of-way at an intersection, proceed if it is safe. A cyclist will expect you to follow the rules of the road.

• Be aware that cyclists don’t always stay on the right. To make a left turn, for instance, they need to move over to the left lane. If the lane is narrow, or if there is glass or a pothole on the right, a cyclist has the right to move out toward the middle for safety.

• Pay attention to bicycle lanes.

Allow plenty of following distance...

Make sure there is enough space if you want to pass a cyclist...

A cyclist often relies on eye contact as a means of communication. Make eye contact if you can...

Don’t honk your horn at a cyclist unless you need to give a warning. A loud honk could startle a cyclist and even cause a fall...

(http://www.icbc.com/driver-licensing/Getting-licensed/driver6.pdf#Variables._frag_)

The drivers tests includes a number of question about cyclists.

I think it does count as advocacy, in the sense that the DMV expects drivers to know that fact, and tests them on it. DMV is not supposed to be a political organization advocating for/against any policy not already enacted into law.

As for drivers getting it wrong and passing anyway, well unless we demand 100% correct answers for passing, it's the best DMV can do. And even if they do pass with a wrong answer, hopefully they'll see why they answered incorrectly so the driver will remember it from this point forward. (I know I remember far more of what I missed - time allowed to notify new address - than what I got right.)

Does anyone know the passing percent on the written DMV tests? I'm pretty sure a monkey could pass it if you taught it to fill in boxes.

I think it does count as advocacy, in the sense that the DMV expects drivers to know that fact, and tests them on it. DMV is not supposed to be a political organization advocating for/against any policy not already enacted into law.

and that's really all I want when I'm on a bike. Equal respect. Yield to my right of way, as I yield to yours.

Each answer plays to what different people think.

They can get it wrong and still pass the test, can't they?

It looks more like a survey than a test.

Unfortunately most driving tests are worded in a similar manner, also in many places you never get retested, or are allowed to drive for many decades before being forced to retest. The driving exam though is based on material in the drivers manual that is given or sold to those who will be taking the exam. It's a safe bet that if this is on the test, the material is also in the drivers manual. It simply means that for the DMV that the age of bicycle as toy is now, at least temporarily, over.

Unfortunately, most qualified drivers will never see that drivers manual, and will never get to answer this question. It's why I think that to renew your licence, you should need to rewrite the test. This could be done via computers at the licence office, you type in your licence number, go through the test, update your information, and then go to the window, where they check your information, stamp or apply a sticker to your licence as renewed, and you then wait for it in the mail.

Using the computer, it could tell you that you got a certain question wrong, and explain in detail why you got it wrong. If you fail the test, you need to go away with a copy of the drivers manual, and study, you must wait 7 days before taking it again. Each attempt can mean either different questions, or the answers in a different order. Failure to pass the test before your licence expires means that you can't drive until you do pass.

My Lord you're touchy.That, or smart enough to write an unbiased test.:rolleyes:

Does anyone know the passing percent on the written DMV tests? I'm pretty sure a monkey could pass it if you taught it to fill in boxes.

The snapshot the OP posted looks like the CA driver's license test. Either way, in CA you are allowed to only miss 6 out of 30 questions the first time you are issued your license, and only 3 questions when you are renewing it. Additionally, you are allowed to take the test up to three times in a visit. Otherwise, you suck, come back tomorrow. They corrected the ones I missed and gave the test to me to keep when I passed (first time, btw).

Back in MD it was different. I remember passing score was comparatively lower and you don't have to take it when you renew. The questions were also complete giveaways especially compared to some of the pretty arcane ones I got in CA.

Regardless, responding to the original topic, if anyone should be raising awareness of the law it should be the police enforcing it.

I think the worst test I've ever taken was in Utah. It had 2 questions about the commercial drivers license that only a holder of a CDL would need to know. I still don't understand that. In general, I was impressed by the lack of driving knowledge required by that test.

The snapshot the OP posted looks like the CA driver's license test. Either way, in CA you are allowed to only miss 6 out of 30 questions the first time you are issued your license, and only 3 questions when you are renewing it.

6 out of 30? Sheesh.

The written test in Germany draws from a pool of 900-something questions (if I remember this right) for the test of a hundred questions or so. They're also multiple choice, except that more than one answer per question can be correct -- and you have to mark all the correct answers, too, even if all four are correct. If a correct response is unmarked, it counts as an error. I don't think you can pass with six errors, either.

It's been a while since my brother-in-law explained the procedure to me, though, so I might not have the numbers right. The multiple correct responses per question is true, though, and the study materials are much, much more thorough than anything I've seen here.

Bicycles
Bicycle riding is an important means of
transportation, particularly for traveling to and
from work and school. Because bicycles are
vehicles, bicyclists must obey the same
traffic laws as other drivers.
Bicyclists usually ride on the right side of the
lane, but are entitled to use the full lane.

Pass with Care
A bicyclist staying to the right in their lane is
accommodating following drivers by making it
easier to see when it is safe to pass, and easier to
execute the pass. Drivers wishing to pass a
bicyclist may do so only when there is
abundant clearance and no oncoming traffic
is in the opposing lane. When passing a
bicyclist, always remember the bicyclist
is entitled to use of the full lane.


From page 95: http://www.ncdot.org/dmv/driver_services/drivershandbook/download/NCDL_English.pdf

The manual isn't perfect; elsewhere it makes far too much fuss (IMO) over the supposed greatly elevated dangers of traveling under the prevailing speed of traffic, rather than admonishing motorists to keep alert for slower traffic such as those slowing for a stop, slowing to turn, or simply limited in their speed capability.

I think that just falls under standard driving precautions. You could replace riders with pedestrians.