NT DriveSafe test mobile phones and distraction practice questions

Question 1

Your phone rings while you are driving and it is in a cradle fixed to the vehicle. What may a fully licensed driver do?

• Pick it up out of the cradle and hold it to your ear
• Rest it on your lap and use the loudspeaker
• Read and reply to a text once you are stopped at the lights
• Answer it without touching it, using a steering wheel button or voice controlCorrect answer

For a driver on a full licence, the phone has to be in a fixed mounting and operated without being touched. Holding it at all while driving is an offence.

Rule cited: Australian Road Rules r 300, as adopted in the Northern Territory

Question 2

You are stopped in a queue of traffic at a red light. Do the mobile phone rules still apply?

• No, you may use the phone freely because the vehicle is not moving
• Yes, you are still driving while stopped in traffic, so the same rules applyCorrect answer
• No, as long as the handbrake is on
• No, texting at the lights is allowed

Stopped in a traffic lane still counts as driving. The rules only change once you have parked somewhere you are allowed to park.

Rule cited: Northern Territory Road Users Handbook, topic: mobile phones

Question 3

Why is texting while driving so dangerous?

• It takes your eyes and your attention off the road for long enough to travel a considerable distance blindCorrect answer
• It is only a problem at high speed
• It is safe as long as you keep one hand on the wheel
• It is fine on a straight road

A few seconds looking down covers a long stretch of road. Anything that appears in that stretch is something you never saw.

Rule cited: Northern Territory Road Users Handbook, topic: mobile phones

Question 4

You want to use your phone for navigation on a trip. What does the law allow a fully licensed driver to do?

• Use it for navigation only if it is in a fixed mounting and you do not touch it while drivingCorrect answer
• Hold it in your hand as long as it is only showing a map
• Nothing, navigation apps cannot be used at all
• Set the route while the vehicle is moving, as long as it is slow

Mount it and set the route before you move off. Changing a destination on the move counts as using the phone.

Rule cited: Northern Territory Road Users Handbook, topic: mobile phones

Question 5

Apart from phones, what else counts as a driving distraction?

• Nothing, phones are the only real distraction
• Eating, loud music, grooming and reaching for things all take attention away from the roadCorrect answer
• Distraction is only a problem in heavy traffic
• Experienced drivers are not affected by distraction

Anything that takes your eyes off the road, your hands off the wheel or your mind off driving is a distraction, and experience does not cancel that out.

Rule cited: Northern Territory Road Users Handbook, topic: distractions

Question 6

You need to make a call that cannot wait. What is the right thing to do?

• Make it at the next red light
• Make it while rolling slowly in light traffic
• Make it with one hand on the wheel
• Park somewhere safe and legal, and only then use the phoneCorrect answer

Pull off the road properly rather than stopping in a traffic lane or on a narrow shoulder. A few minutes is cheaper than a crash or a fine.

Rule cited: Northern Territory Road Users Handbook, topic: mobile phones

Question 7

You are on a stretch of road that needs your full attention and an argument in the car is getting heated. What is the safest choice?

• Join in so it gets settled quickly
• Turn around and face the passengers to make your point
• Stay out of it, keep your eyes on the road, and pull over if it needs sorting outCorrect answer
• Turn the music up loud to drown it out

An argument pulls your mind off driving even when your eyes stay forward. If you cannot leave it alone, stop somewhere safe.

Rule cited: Northern Territory Road Users Handbook, topic: distractions

Question 8

What is true about hands free phone calls while driving?

• A hands free call takes no attention at all
• A hands free call is exactly the same as talking to a passenger in every way
• Distraction only matters for new drivers
• Even a hands free call takes some attention off driving, so keep calls short or leave them until you have stoppedCorrect answer

Hands free solves the hands problem, not the attention problem. A passenger can see the traffic and pause the conversation, while a caller cannot.

Rule cited: Northern Territory Road Users Handbook, topic: distractions