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Ontario G1 overview

Ontario G1: Construction, information and direction signs

Orange temporary condition signs in work zones, doubled construction-zone fines, green guide signs, freeway exit numbering, emergency detour routes and bilingual signs.

  • 28 questions
  • Topic drill
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Construction, information and direction signs · Question 1Score 0/0
Orange diamond with a black figure holding up a flag

What should you do when you see this sign?

Study reference: MTO Driver's Handbook (online edition, 2026), Ch. 3 Traffic signs and lights — Signs: temporary condition, information and direction signs

All 28 questions in this test

Every question and its answer choices. The correct answers and explanations appear when you take the test above.

  1. What should you do when you see this sign?

    Orange diamond with a black figure holding up a flag
    1. Speed up to get through the zone
    2. Drive slowly and watch for instructions
    3. Stop and wait until the sign is removed
    4. Change lanes as soon as possible

  2. Interchange 204 on Highway 401 is 204 kilometres from which city, where the freeway begins?

    1. London
    2. Kingston
    3. Toronto
    4. Windsor

  3. What does this sign mean?

    Orange rectangle with one word in black capital letters
    1. A temporary detour from the usual route
    2. Trucks must take another route
    3. A new road has opened ahead
    4. The road ahead is closed for good

  4. On a freeway, what does the exit number on this sign tell you?

    Green freeway sign with a small tab on top reading EXIT 204 above a street name
    1. The number of the road you exit onto
    2. Its distance from the freeway's start
    3. The distance to the next exit
    4. The order in which the exits were built

  5. You see this sign. What does it tell you?

    Orange diamond with three lines of black lettering, the last reading 1 km
    1. A construction zone ends in one kilometre
    2. A detour runs for the next kilometre
    3. A lower speed limit for one kilometre
    4. Construction work is one kilometre ahead

  6. You are following detour markers around a closed road. How long should you keep following them?

    1. Until you have gone one kilometre
    2. Until you reach a freeway
    3. Until the next traffic light
    4. Until you are back on your regular route

  7. What do most information and direction signs look like?

    1. Diamond-shaped, yellow with black letters
    2. Diamond-shaped, orange with black letters
    3. Rectangular, white with black letters
    4. Rectangular, green with white letters

  8. You are driving in a designated bilingual area. How should you read the signs?

    1. Read the language you understand best
    2. Read both parts fully before acting on either
    3. Read the French part only
    4. Read the English part only

  9. What does this sign warn you about?

    Orange diamond with a black figure holding a shovel
    1. A school crossing guard ahead
    2. A pedestrian crossing ahead
    3. Road work ahead
    4. A survey crew on the shoulder only

  10. In a bilingual area, English and French messages are on separate signs. How are they placed?

    1. They are on opposite sides of the road
    2. They face opposite directions of travel
    3. The English sign comes just before the French one
    4. The French sign comes just before the English one

  11. An orange sign warns that a survey crew is ahead. Where are they working?

    1. In a field beside the road
    2. On the next exit ramp
    3. On the road ahead
    4. On the road behind you

  12. What do the numbers on this green sign show?

    Green rectangle listing three place names, each with a number on the right
    1. Distances in kilometres to each place
    2. Speed limits in each place
    3. Travel time in minutes to each place
    4. Highway numbers for each place

  13. A temporary sign warns that the pavement has been milled or grooved. What may be affected?

    1. Your fuel economy on long trips
    2. Your headlight aim
    3. Your radio reception
    4. Your vehicle's ability to stop

  14. Which road users does the handbook single out as possibly losing traction on milled or grooved pavement?

    1. Cyclists
    2. Bus drivers
    3. Truck drivers
    4. Motorcyclists

  15. You see this sign in a work zone. What should you do?

    Orange diamond with two lanes; one lane is blocked and an arrow curves into the other lane
    1. Stop and wait for a flag person
    2. Drive on the shoulder past the closure
    3. Obey the speed limit and merge into the open lane
    4. Stay in your lane until you reach the workers

  16. On this advance freeway sign, what does the arrow in the yellow box mean?

    Green sign with a street name and three downward arrows; the right arrow sits in a yellow box with a word under it
    1. That lane is for trucks only
    2. That lane leads off the freeway
    3. That lane is closed ahead
    4. That lane is a toll lane

  17. A temporary sign tells you that you are entering a construction zone. What should you be prepared for?

    1. A lower speed limit
    2. A toll booth
    3. A higher speed limit
    4. A ferry crossing

  18. Some electronic signs change their messages with traffic conditions. What do they tell you?

    1. Directions to the nearest town
    2. The posted speed limit for trucks
    3. Current delays and lane closures ahead
    4. Weather forecasts for tomorrow

  19. When are signs like this used?

    White sign with a green border, green capital letters and a green arrow
    1. When a road is closed for planned roadwork
    2. When police detour traffic off a closed highway
    3. When an evacuation drill is held
    4. When a school bus route is changed

  20. On a work zone board like this, what do the flashing lights show?

    Black rectangular board with a row of yellow lights shaped like an arrow pointing left
    1. How far away the work is
    2. The lane that is open to trucks
    3. The direction to follow
    4. The speed limit in the zone

  21. What does this green sign show?

    Green rectangle with two place names, each followed by a white arrow
    1. Towns closed to through traffic
    2. Speed limits in nearby towns
    3. Distances to nearby towns and cities
    4. Directions to nearby towns and cities

  22. You are at interchange 250 on a freeway and want to get off at interchange 204. About how far do you have to drive?

    1. 204 km
    2. 54 km
    3. 250 km
    4. 46 km

  23. Some information signs have a numbering system along the bottom. What is it for?

    1. Listing the highway's year of opening
    2. Helping emergency vehicles find a route
    3. Showing the speed limit for trucks
    4. Counting down to the next exit

  24. When do the doubled fines shown on this sign apply?

    Tall sign with an orange top panel of lettering above a white panel with two more lines of lettering
    1. Speeding only after dark
    2. Any offence at any time of day
    3. Parking in the zone at any time
    4. Speeding while workers are present

  25. A pilot vehicle leading traffic through a work zone carries a sign. What must you not do?

    1. Use your headlights
    2. Pass the pilot vehicle
    3. Slow down behind it
    4. Follow the pilot vehicle

  26. What shape and colour are most temporary condition signs?

    1. Rectangular and white
    2. Rectangular and green
    3. Diamond-shaped and orange
    4. Diamond-shaped and yellow

  27. What does the word 'VIA' mean on a direction sign?

    1. The road has a speed camera
    2. The road is a toll route
    3. The roads to follow to reach a destination
    4. The destination is a railway station

  28. Under which law are speeding fines doubled in a designated construction zone?

    1. The Motor Vehicle Safety Act
    2. A municipal bylaw
    3. The Criminal Code
    4. The Highway Traffic Act

Construction, information and direction signs: key rules to remember

Our summary of what the official handbook says on this topic, in our own words. Read it before or after the practice questions above, then check the original chapter. Read the official chapter ↗

Temporary condition signs

  • Purpose: warn of unusual temporary conditions — road work zones, diversions, detours, lane closures, traffic control people on the road.
  • Usual look: diamond-shaped, orange background, black letters or symbols.
  • Construction work one kilometre ahead.
  • Road work ahead.
  • Survey crew working on the road ahead.
  • Traffic control person ahead: drive slowly, watch for instructions.
  • Entering a construction zone: extra caution, be prepared for a lower speed limit.
  • Temporary detour from the normal route.
  • Flashing arrow board: the flashing lights on the arrows show the direction to follow.
  • Milled/grooved pavement: stopping ability may be affected — obey the speed limit, extra caution; motorcyclists may have reduced traction.
  • Lane closed for roadwork ahead: obey the speed limit and merge into the open lane.
  • Closed lane with arrow: adjust speed and merge into the lane the arrow shows.
  • Sign on a pilot or pace vehicle: do not pass that vehicle.
  • Reduce speed and be prepared to stop.
  • Detour marker: follow it until you are back on your regular route.
  • Fines-doubled sign: Highway Traffic Act (HTA) fines for speeding are doubled in a designated construction zone when workers are present.

Information and direction signs

  • Purpose: distances and destinations. Usual look: rectangular, green background, white letters. Other colours guide you to facilities, services and attractions.
  • Direction sign: directions to nearby towns and cities.
  • Distance sign: distances in kilometres to towns and cities along the road.
  • Freeway exit signs: in urban areas many exit ramps have more than one lane; overhead and ground-mounted signs help you pick the right lane to exit or stay on.
  • Advance exit signs use arrows to show which lanes lead off the freeway; signs are also posted at the exit itself.
  • When one or more lanes lead off, the matching arrows on the advance sign sit in a yellow box with the word "exit" under them.
  • Interchange/exit numbers = distance in km from the start of the freeway. Example: interchange 204 on Highway 401 is 204 km from Windsor, where the 401 begins. Subtract one interchange number from another to get the distance between them.
  • "VIA" names the roads you must follow to reach a destination.
  • Roundabout guide sign: shows the upcoming roundabout exits and where they lead.
  • Changeable message signs: change with traffic conditions; give current information on delays and lane closures.
  • Off-road facility signs: hospitals, airports, universities, carpool lots.
  • Other guide signs: route to a passenger railway station; route to an airport; facilities accessible by wheelchair.

Other signs (EDR)

  • Emergency Detour Route (EDR) signs: used during an UNSCHEDULED closure of a provincial highway, when the OPP detour all traffic off the highway. Markers along alternative routes guide drivers around the closure and back onto the highway.

Emergency response signs

  • Some information signs carry a numbering system along the bottom to help emergency vehicles and drivers work out an appropriate route.

Bilingual signs

  • Watch for them in designated bilingual areas; read the message in the language you understand best.
  • English and French may be on one sign, or on separate signs with the English sign immediately followed by the French one.

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