Speed Limits and Safe Following Distance
Speed limits and following distance are tested together because the legal maximum and the safe gap depend on the same conditions. The exam checks default limits, posted limits and the gap you keep.
Limits
- Kuwait’s general urban limit is 50 km/h.
- Main highways are commonly signed at 100–120 km/h; the posted sign always governs.
- Limits can change at city boundaries, roadworks and school zones.
- A limit is a maximum for good conditions, not a target in dust, rain or heavy traffic.
Following distance
- Use the two-second rule in dry weather.
- At 100 km/h you travel about 28 m per second, so two seconds is about 56 m.
- Double the gap to four seconds in dust, rain or low visibility, and add more if loaded or towing.
- Keep a longer gap behind motorcycles, trucks and vehicles that block your view.
Worked example
You are doing 100 km/h on a dry highway. You choose a lamp post and count “one thousand and one, one thousand and two.” If you pass the post before finishing, you are closer than two seconds. Reasoning: at 28 m/s, two seconds is 56 m; a 30 m gap is barely one second and leaves no time to react. In a dust storm, use four seconds - about 112 m - and slow down.
Traps that cost marks
- Treating the sign as a recommended speed.
- Keeping a two-second gap in dust.
- Ignoring a lower limit at roadworks.
- Watching the car ahead instead of the road ahead.