CLP FORMULAS — KNOWT STUDY GUIDE
1. Where should the 1st emergency warning triangle be placed?
→ 10 ft to the rear or front. On the test: rear.
2. Where should the 2nd triangle be placed?
→ Always 100 ft to the rear.
3. Where should the 3rd triangle be placed?
→ 200 ft to the rear on a one-way/divided highway.
→ 100 ft to the front on a two-way road.
4. On a curve or hill, how far back can the rear-most triangle be moved?
→ Up to 500 ft behind. CLP Formulas - Updated 71026.pdf
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🛑 STOPPING DISTANCE @ 55 MPH
5. What is perception distance at 55 mph?
→ 142 ft
6. What is reaction distance at 55 mph?
→ 61 ft
7. What is air-brake lag distance at 55 mph?
→ 32 ft
8. What is braking distance on dry pavement with good brakes?
→ 216 ft
9. What is the TOTAL stopping distance at 55 mph?
→ 451 ft
🧠 Memorize:
142 + 61 + 32 + 216 = 451 ft CLP Formulas - Updated 71026.pdf
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🚗 FOLLOWING DISTANCE
10. What is the basic following-distance formula under 40 mph?
→ 1 second for every 10 ft of vehicle length.
11. What happens when traveling over 40 mph?
→ Add 1 additional second.
12. A 30-ft vehicle traveling over 40 mph needs how much following distance?
→ 4 seconds.
13. A 40-ft vehicle traveling under 40 mph needs how much?
→ 4 seconds.
14. A 40-ft vehicle traveling over 40 mph needs how much?
→ 5 seconds.
15. What is the minimum following distance for a large vehicle?
→ At least 4 seconds.
16. How much extra following distance should you add at night?
→ 1 second.
17. What should you do in slick weather?
→ Allow much more space. CLP Formulas - Updated 71026.pdf
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🚌 SCHOOL BUS
18. What is the danger zone around a school bus?
→ 10–15 ft from the sides.
19. Which part of the side danger zone is the most dangerous?
→ The first 10 ft.
20. How far can the front danger zone extend?
→ 30 ft.
🪞 MIRRORS
21. What can flat mirrors show?
→ Down the sides of the bus, back tires touching the ground, and 200 ft behind.
22. What can convex mirrors show?
→ Down the side up to the mirror mount, in front of the back tires touching the ground, and at least one traffic lane on either side.
23. What are crossover/cross-view mirrors used for?
→ They are the danger-zone mirrors.
24. What can crossover/cross-view mirrors see?
→ Directly in front of the bus, front tires touching the ground, and the service door. CLP Formulas - Updated 71026.pdf
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🚂 RAILROAD CROSSING
25. When should you turn on your 4-way/hazard lights?
→ 200 ft before the railroad crossing.
26. How far from the tracks should you stop?
→ No closer than 15 ft and no farther than 50 ft.
27. What should you do after stopping?
→ Secure the bus: parking brake ON + shift into neutral.
28. What should you open?
→ Service door and driver’s window.
29. What should you silence?
→ Passengers and noise makers: radio, heat, AC, fans.
30. What should you do before crossing?
→ Look and listen for a train.
31. If you see or hear a train, what do you do?
→ Stop and wait.
32. If there is no train, what must you check?
→ Containment — make sure there is enough space for the bus on the other side.
33. Once you have proper containment and no train is present, what do you do?
→ Go. Don’t stop and don’t back up while crossing. CLP Formulas - Updated 71026.pdf
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🛑 SNUB vs. STAB BRAKING
34. What is snub braking used for?
→ Maintaining a safe speed on downgrades.
35. What is stab braking used for?
→ Emergency braking.
36. How does stab braking work?
→ Press the service brakes hard until the wheels lock → release the brakes → repeat once the wheels start rolling again.
37. Can you use stab braking on a vehicle equipped with ABS?
→ NO.
38. What does ABS stand for?
→ Anti-lock Brakes.
39. What does ABS do?
→ Helps prevent the wheels from locking during hard braking. CLP Formulas - Updated 71026.pdf
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🅿️ AIR BRAKES
Brake Chamber
40. What are the two main types of brakes located within the brake chamber?
→ Service Brakes
→ Spring Brakes
41. When are service brakes tested?
→ While slowly moving at 5 mph.
42. What are spring brakes?
→ Actual mechanical springs.
43. What is Job #1 for spring brakes?
→ Parking brake — manually pulled.
44. What is Job #2 for spring brakes?
→ Emergency brake — comes on automatically when air pressure is lost. CLP Formulas - Updated 71026.pdf
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💨 AIR BRAKE TEST
Starting Setup
45. What should the gauges read initially?
→ 125 PSI — full tanks.
46. What should you watch?
→ Both gauges.
47. What should you do with the parking brake?
→ Release it.
Leak Tests
48. What is the maximum static brake leak?
→ 2 PSI in 1 minute.
49. What is the maximum dynamic/applied brake leak?
→ 3 PSI in 1 minute.
50. What happens during the static leak check?
→ All brakes are OFF and the system settles.
51. What happens during the dynamic/applied leak check?
→ Depress the service brake. CLP Formulas -
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🔥 PRESSURE NUMBERS TO MEMORIZE
16