Walk It Through: The Morning Drive

Reasonable and prudent, a lane away or a $275 penalty, and a bus's stop signal.

In a residential district with no posted limit, the driver is late.

Two things a person in this spot might do. Picking one shows what the law says about it.

One driver's commute. Pulling over for a siren, following distances for police and fire vehicles, and license suspension for repeat bus violations are not worked through here.

A practice walkthrough, not a prediction of how any real one will go. Legal information, not legal advice.

Words this turns on

Terms with a legal meaning that is narrower than the everyday one. Each links to the definition and the authority behind it.

Prima facie speedA speed presumed too great unless posted otherwise: over 15 miles per hour approaching a school crossing, over 25 miles per hour in a business or residential district, over 65 miles per hour elsewhere.