Mississippi CDL — General Knowledge practice
Mississippi CDL — General Knowledge: Traffic Laws practice test
Speed limits, turning and signaling rules, headlight and seat-belt requirements, and the everyday laws every driver must follow.
Content reviewed against official driver handbooks · August 12, 2026
14 questions · pass with 11 correct. You get instant feedback and an explanation after every answer.
Choose your level
Up to 20 questions on this topic, with feedback after every answer.
Study questions with answers
12 sample Traffic Laws questions with the correct answer, a short explanation, and the official handbook reference. Read through them, then take the quiz above.
Show all 12 questions with answers
1. Many states set maximum axle weights with a 'bridge formula.' What does that formula do?
Correct answer: It allows less weight on axles that are closer together
A bridge formula lowers the maximum weight for closely spaced axles so bridges and roadways are not overloaded.
Source: Mississippi CDL Manual — Section 3: Transporting Cargo Safely (Legal Weight Limits)
2. What is usually required to move an over-length, over-width, or overweight load?
Correct answer: A special transit permit, with travel often restricted to certain times
Oversized loads need special permits, and driving them is usually limited to set times. They may also need signs, flags, flashing lights, or escort vehicles.
Source: Mississippi CDL Manual — Section 3: Transporting Cargo Safely (Oversized Loads)
3. How many driver licenses may a commercial driver legally hold?
Correct answer: Only one
Holding more than one license is against the rules, and breaking that rule can bring a fine of up to $5,000 or jail time.
Source: Mississippi CDL Manual — Section 1: Introduction (Other CDL Rules)
4. A federal or state inspector judges your vehicle unsafe. What will the inspector do?
Correct answer: Declare it out of service until repairs are made
Inspectors who find a vehicle unsafe declare it 'out of service' until repairs are made. Federal and state law also forbids driving an unsafe vehicle.
Source: Mississippi CDL Manual — Section 2: Driving Safely (Vehicle Inspection)
5. When must the driver of a commercial motor vehicle wear a safety belt?
Correct answer: At all times while operating the vehicle
CMV drivers must be belted the whole time they drive. The belt keeps you behind the wheel in a crash so you can keep control, and unbelted drivers thrown from a vehicle are four times more likely to be killed.
Source: Mississippi CDL Manual — Section 1: Introduction (Other CDL Rules)
6. Which of these counts as prohibited hand-held mobile phone use for a CMV driver?
Correct answer: Dialing by pressing more than one button
Hand-held use includes holding a phone in one hand to talk, dialing with more than a single button press, and leaving your belted seating position to reach for a phone. A nearby hands-free phone is the permitted option.
Source: Mississippi CDL Manual — Section 2: Driving Safely (Cell/Mobile Phones)
7. Federal rules say the combined working load limit of the tie-downs securing an article must be at least what fraction of that article's weight?
Correct answer: One-half
Added together, the working load limits of all the tie-downs on an item must come to at least 50 percent of what that item weighs.
Source: Mississippi CDL Manual — Section 3: Transporting Cargo Safely (Cargo Tie-down)
8. How do federal motor carrier rules define 'texting' for a CMV driver?
Correct answer: Entering text by hand into a device such as a phone, or reading text on its screen
Texting covers both typing text into and reading text from an electronic device — e-mail, instant messages, and web pages included. Hands-free voice calls are governed by separate phone rules.
Source: Mississippi CDL Manual — Section 2: Driving Safely (Texting)
9. When may a CMV driver use a hand-held phone or send a text while driving?
Correct answer: When it is needed to reach law enforcement or other emergency services
Both the phone and texting rules carry an emergency exception for contacting law enforcement or emergency services. Dispatch calls and quiet roads are not exceptions.
Source: Mississippi CDL Manual — Section 2: Driving Safely (Cell/Mobile Phones)
10. Apart from disqualification, what civil penalty may a CMV driver face for each violation of the federal texting ban?
Correct answer: Up to $2,750
Drivers face civil penalties of up to $2,750 for the first violation and for each one after it, on top of any disqualification.
Source: Mississippi CDL Manual — Section 2: Driving Safely (Texting)
11. A driver plans a hands-free call but unbuckles and leans across the cab to grab the phone. Does this comply with the rules?
Correct answer: No; reaching unsafely for a phone is a violation even if the call will be hands-free
Moving out of your belted driving position to reach a phone is itself prohibited. Keep the phone close enough to operate while restrained.
Source: Mississippi CDL Manual — Section 2: Driving Safely (Don't Drive Distracted)
12. Your license states that corrective lenses are required. When may you drive without them?
Correct answer: Never; moving the vehicle without them is illegal
When your license lists corrective lenses as a requirement, driving even a short distance without them breaks the law. Keeping a spare pair in the vehicle helps if your usual pair breaks.
Source: Mississippi CDL Manual — Section 2: Driving Safely (Driver Factors)
More CDL — General Knowledge topics
Practice Traffic Laws in another state
Every Mississippi question is written from the official Mississippi driver handbook and checked against its current edition. DMV Test Free is a free, independent study resource — not affiliated with any DMV or government agency. About DMV Test Free