Sharing the Road with Other Users
What this domain covers
Sharing-the-road questions test your duties toward pedestrians, bicyclists, motorcyclists, school buses, large trucks, and roadside workers. Colorado law gives many of these users protection that drivers must actively respect.
Core rules
- Pedestrians in a crosswalk have the right-of-way. Stop and stay stopped for a pedestrian crossing; do not pass a vehicle stopped at a crosswalk, because it may be yielding to someone you cannot see.
- When passing a bicyclist, Colorado requires at least three feet of clearance. If you cannot leave three feet safely, wait until you can. Bicyclists generally ride in the direction of traffic and may use the full lane when needed for safety.
- Motorcycles are entitled to a full lane. Do not share a lane with a motorcycle, and check blind spots before changing lanes.
- School buses with red flashing lights and an extended stop arm require traffic to stop. On a divided highway with a median, traffic on the opposite side is not required to stop; on an undivided road, both directions stop.
- Large trucks have large no-zones behind, beside, and in front. If you cannot see the truck driver's mirrors, the driver cannot see you. Allow extra room when a truck turns; it may swing wide.
- Colorado's Move Over law requires you to move over a lane, or slow down if moving over is unsafe, for emergency, tow, and maintenance vehicles with flashing lights.
Worked example
You are behind a bicyclist on a narrow two-lane road. There is an oncoming car, and a solid yellow line on your side. The bicyclist is entitled to the lane, and passing with less than three feet is illegal and unsafe. You slow, stay back, and wait until the oncoming car passes and you reach a broken line with clear sight distance. Then you pass with at least three feet. Squeezing through the gap is the classic error.
Traps that cost marks
A divided highway does not always mean the opposite direction ignores a school bus; the median is the key. Do not turn right across a bike lane without checking for a cyclist coming from behind. Do not assume a truck can see you or stop quickly. Move Over applies even when you are not the first vehicle.