Table of Contents
driving commercial vehicles cover
What to take to the driver licensing office
TOC
introduction
Using this guide
Inside this guide
Licence study chart
01: getting your driver’s licence
Licence classes
Medical fitness
Air brake endorsement
How to apply for an air brake endorsement
How to apply for a Class 1, 2, 3 or 4 driver’s licence
How to apply for a heavy trailer endorsement
Knowledge tests
Road testing
Pre-trip inspection test
Road test
Road test vehicles
Strategies to ensure your vehicle is safe
Retest
Commercial driver training
Air brake courses
Keeping your licence
Review questions
Commercial driver medical examination processing fee
Upgrading your commercial licence
Downgrading to a non-commercial licence
Downgrading to a lower commercial licence class
Vision
02: heavy vehicle braking
What you’ll learn
Starting and stopping
Power to move and power to stop
Stopping distance and stopping time
Speed and weight facts
How much heat can brakes handle?
Retarders
Using retarders
Braking
Icy roads
Downgrades
On highways
In town
Water on roadways
Runaway lanes
Combination unit braking
Anti-lock braking systems
Automatic traction control
Review questions
03: basic driving skills
Sharing the road
Following distance
Taxi, limousine, ambulance or van
Bus, truck or other heavy vehicle
Traffic flow
Driving faster than the flow
Driving slower than the flow
Tailgaters
Construction zones
Danger zones
Manoeuvring
Steering into turns
Wheel positions during turns
Turning radius
Off track
Curves and turns
Curves
Negotiating narrow bridges
Turning right
Sharp right turns
Turning left
Traffic circles and roundabouts
Traffic circles
Roundabouts
Backing up
Backing up with a guide
Backing up without a guide
Seeing and being seen
Using your mirrors
Looking ahead
Which lane should you use?
Lane use
Emergency vehicles
Stopped vehicles with flashing lights
Shifting gears
Knowing how to shift gears
Double-clutching
Knowing when to shift gears
Shifting skills
Shifting gasoline-powered (not governed) engines
Shifting gasoline- or diesel-powered governed engines
Multi-speed rear axles and auxiliary transmissions
Entering curves
Passing and being passed
Passing
Being passed
Parking
Crossings
Intersections
Alleys, lanes and side roads
Railway crossings
Controlled and uncontrolled crossings
Crossing in a large vehicle
Acts of nature
Animals on the road
Weather conditions
Night driving
Vehicle safety
Tires and wheels
Tire pressure
Tire wear
Tire condition
Tire problems
Disk wheel problems
Cast spoke wheel problems
Brake failure warning devices
Braking systems
Flashing lights
Disabled vehicles
Personal safety
Carbon monoxide poisoning
Seatbelts
Airbags and head restraints
Cellphones and other devices
Impairment
Criminal Code penalties
Other costs of impaired driving
Vehicle impoundment
Prescribed and over-the-counter drugs
Fatigue
Emotions
Fire
Firefighting
Fire extinguishers
Vehicles required to carry fire extinguishers
04: fuel-efficient driving
Fuel efficiency — a growing priority
Making smart choices
Smart driving practices
Starting
Preparation and planning
Fuel
Route planning
Dealing with the weather
Smart driving techniques
Start out easy
Choose the right gear
Ease off the throttle
Use see-think-do
Road and traffic conditions
Reduce idling
Maintaining your vehicle
Choosing a fuel-efficient vehicle
Choose the right truck
Look for aerodynamic features
Tire choice
Accessories
Review questions
05: skills for driving trucks and trailers
Driving with a trailer
Backing up
Parking
Towing doubles
Towing trailers
Preparing to tow
Coupling and uncoupling
Coupling with a fifth wheel
Uncoupling units
Other types of connections
Coupling with a pintle hitch
Uncoupling pintle hitch units
Loading
Loading cargo
Arranging and distributing loads
Securing cargo
General cargo securement requirements
General requirements for tiedowns
Number of tiedowns
Strength of tiedowns
Determining working load limit
Chain connector links
Front-end structures
Load projections
Specific cargo types
Logs
Building products
Metal coils
Paper rolls
Concrete pipe
Intermodal containers
Vehicles as cargo
Roll-on/roll-off and hook-lift containers
Boulders
Livestock
Hanging meat
Liquid or dry bulk tank loads
Transporting dangerous goods
Vehicle and load dimensions
Height
Width
Length
Weight
Oversize and overload permits
Overload permits
Oversize permits
Pilot cars
Signs
Distance from oversize vehicle
Reporting to weigh scales
Fixed weigh scales
Portable weigh scales
Review questions
Swerving and whipping
06: skills for driving buses, taxis, limousines and ride-hailing vehicles
What you’ll learn
Passenger safety
Manoeuvring
Leaving the curb
Bus right-of-way
Passing parked cars
Operating a bus, taxi, limousine or ride-hailing vehicle
Taking on and letting off passengers
Smoking
Focus on driving
Standing passengers
Refusing to transport passengers
Let-down or jump seats
Transporting people with disabilities
Chauffeur’s permit
Inside lights
Vehicle cleanliness
Vehicle inspection
Emergency equipment and exits
Defects and breakdowns
Fuelling
Baggage
Smoking and using alcoholic beverages
Reporting a defect or deficiency
Operating a school bus
Unfit vehicles
Rental buses
Brake maintenance
Mechanical defects
Refuelling
Emergency equipment and exits
School bus signs
Exterior mirrors
Passengers must be seated
Cleanliness
Taking on and letting off passengers
Operating emergency vehicles
Review questions
07: hours of service requirements
National Safety Code
Hours of service
On-duty time
Off-duty time
Day
Daily limits — a simple three-point check for compliance
Work shift
Daily hours (cycles)
Driver has ‘deferred’ two hours from Day 1 to Day 2
Deferring off-duty time
Reset provision
Sleeper berth
Personal use exemption
Logbooks
Sample logbook
Drivers operating within 160 km of home terminal
Other jurisdictions
Driving north of the 60th parallel
Driving into the U.S.
Review questions
08: air brakes
Why air brakes?
What’s compressed air?
Basic air brake components
Force multipliers
Air brake chamber components
Leverage and air pressure
Long stroke and regular stroke brake chambers
Air brake chamber — air pressure applied
Foundation brakes: s-cam type
Compressor
Intake stroke
Compression stroke
Governor
Reservoirs
Foot valve
How air brakes work
Brakes applied
Brakes released
Dual air brake systems
Components of a dual air brake system
Supply, primary and secondary reservoirs
One-way check valve
Reservoir pressure gauges
Low-air warning device
Quick release valve
Relay valve
Dual system with primary system failure
Parking brakes
Spring parking brakes
Applying and releasing spring parking brakes
Spring parking brake — released
Spring parking brake — service brake applied
Spring parking brake — spring brake applied
Driver alert — compounding of brakes
Spring parking brake — manual release
Spring parking brakes in dual air brake systems
Blended air
Dual air brake system — partial system failure
Safety actuator parking brakes
Tractor-trailer air brake systems
Tractor protection
Trailer air supply valve
Hand valve
Two-way check valve
Bobtail tractors
Dual air tractor-trailer system — foot valve applied
Dual tractor-trailer system — primary air system failure
Dual tractor-trailer system — trailer breakaway
Other types of foundation brakes
Wedge brakes
Air disc brakes
Air-over-hydraulic brakes
Trailer with relay emergency valve — charging
Trailer with relay emergency valve — applying
Trailer with relay emergency valve — dynamited
Trailer with spring parking brakes — charging
Trailer with spring parking brakes — service brake application
Trailer with spring parking brakes — dynamited
Other air brake system components
Air dryers
Alcohol evaporators and alcohol injectors
Automatic drain valves
Front wheel limiting systems
Automatic front wheel limiting systems
Manual front wheel limiting systems
Spring parking brake emergency release system
Pressure-protection valves
Application pressure gauges
Anti-lock braking systems
Trailer ABS air brake systems
Review questions
09: air brake adjustment
What you’ll learn
Brake adjustment — it’s critical
Brake adjustment — it’s the law
S-cam brake — released
S-cam brake — applied
S-cam brake — incorrectly adjusted and cold brake drum
S-cam brake — incorrectly adjusted and hot brake drum
Checking and adjusting s-cam brakes — manual slack adjuster
Applied stroke method (service brake application)
Pry method of free stroke measurement
Brake adjustment indicators
Brake adjustment — manual slack adjuster
Adjustment
S-cam brakes — automatic slack adjuster
Checking and adjusting automatic slack adjusters
Slack adjusters with hexagonal adjusting bolts
Slack adjusters with square adjusting bolts
Air brake adjustment myths
Review questions
10: vehicle and air brake pre-trip inspections
What you’ll learn
You’re responsible
Vehicle condition
Cargo securement
Written report requirements
Pre-trip inspection report for your road test
Conducting a pre-trip inspection
Before you begin
Tractor-trailer combination pre-trip inspection — Class 1
1. Under hood
2. In cab
3. Air brake system test
4. Circle check for lights
5. Mechanical circle check
6. Brake response, tug and steering wheel slack tests
Single unit truck pre-trip inspection — Class 3
1. Under hood
2. In cab
3. Air brake system test
4. Circle check for lights
5. Mechanical circle check
6. Brake response, tug and steering wheel slack tests
Bus pre-trip inspection — Class 2 or Class 4 (unrestricted)
1. Engine compartment
2. In cab
3. Circle check
4. Passenger compartment check
5. Brake response, tug and steering wheel slack tests
Passenger vehicle pre-trip inspection — Class 4 (restricted)
1. Under hood
2. In passenger compartment
Start engine, check the following:
3. Circle check
4. Brake response tests
Pre-hill inspections
In-service brake checks
En route inspections
Post-trip inspections
Lights and reflectors
Review questions
11: signs, signals and road markings
Signs
Regulatory signs
School, playground and crosswalk signs
Lane use signs
Turn control signs
Parking signs
Reserved lane signs
Warning signs
Object markers
Construction signs
Information and destination signs
Railway signs
Signals
Lane control signals
Traffic lights
Road markings
Yellow lines
White lines
Reserved lane markings
Other markings
Review questions
12: industrial roads
What you’ll learn
Industrial air brake endorsement
How to apply for an industrial air brake endorsement
Driver’s duty to inspect vehicles
Reporting defects
Brakes
Brake test
Water cooled brakes
Parking
Driving on industrial roads
Speed
Right-of-way
Warning signals
Railway crossings
Safety tips
Highway crossing permits
Review questions
13: for more information
Dangerous goods
In case of an emergency
Federal contacts
Canadian Transport Emergency Centre (CANUTEC)
Transport Canada
Environment Canada
Commercial vehicle information
Commercial vehicle safety and enforcement
Report commercial vehicle safety violations
Commercial vehicle permit line
Dangerous goods inspectors
Dangerous goods head office
Metro Vancouver/Fraser Valley
Interior
Northern Region
Passenger transportation branch
Booking road tests and licensing information
Medical qualifications
More information
ICBC Prorate
ICBC Tip Line
Acts and regulations
National Safety Code
Other acts and regulations
Travel information
Road reports (B.C.)
Weather
Travelling into the U.S.
Canada Customs
B.C. Ferries
Tourism B.C.
Reporting forest fires
TaxiHost
Metric conversion table
Index
Examiners’ tips for passing the Class 1, 2, 3 and 4 road tests
Index
Examiners' tips for passing
Identification (ID)
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