Requirements for a Class A CDL
- Large vehicles such as tractor-trailers now require education, training and qualification to drive.line of trucks 1 image by Aaron Kohr from Fotolia.com
A Class A vehicle is any combination of vehicles (such as a tractor-trailer) with a gross vehicle weight rating of 26,001 pounds or more. Before the implementation of the Commercial Driver's License Program, in most states, anyone with a driver's license was eligible to drive one of these vehicles without any training or qualifying testing. Today there are a variety of regulations and requirements to get a Class A CDL license. - States each develop their own tests that must pass federal standards. The general knowledge test must contain at least 30 questions and to pass that test an applicant has to answer at least 80 percent of the questions correctly. To pass the skills test, the applicant must successfully perform all of the skills in a representative type of vehicle that the applicant expects to operate.
- Third-party testing facilities can include other states, employers, training facilities, government departments or agencies, and private institutions. Tests and examiners must meet with the same qualifications of the state and must be evaluated by the state once a year.
- A driver must certify her driving record during the two years prior to the application. The applicant must have one license that has not been suspended, revoked or canceled. She must not have been convicted for any major type of motor vehicle or serious traffic violations. The applicant must be free of any violation of state or local law relating to motor vehicle traffic control (no record of an accident where the applicant is at fault).
- A driver must certify and provide evidence that he is employed in a job requiring operation of a commercial motor vehicle or previously taken a behind-the-wheel skills test. A driver may also certify that he has driven a representative vehicle for at least two years preceding the application.
