February 2011 - CDL in a Week
I received my CDL A license in 1 week.
I received my CDL A license in 1 week.
Friday - Went local DPS office to apply for Class A CDL.
Saturday - Studied the longest section 2, and air brake, combination
Sunday - Studied cargo, pre-trip, passenger, and tanker and refreshed Saturday's study.
Monday - went in minutes before the 4:30 testing deadline. There was only have time to take 1 exam - the longest general knowledge test. Finished with 15 minutes to spare before the closing. But no more tests were given out.
Tuesday - went in at the lunch break. No more wait in line, Decided to take the remaining tests (Passenger, air brake, combination, and pre-trip inspection). Completed and passed tests in 40 minutes.
Wednesday - Arranged for the first lesson. 2 hours. Lots of explaining about tests, and being reminded about bad driving habits. Having trouble to get that "feel" of air brake.
Thursday - Started the 2nd 1 1/2 hours driving. Being reminded about the importance of driving habits again. Focused on backing and parallel parking. Once the trailer started to drift, It's hard to get back to the straight line.
Friday - Arrange with driving school (using their vehicle) for driving test. Didn't get to try out the actual test route. Passed the driving test with a score of 91. Backing was bad - it drifted, didn't know whether to "go straight" at a tangent, or should be trying to "get back - the straight line". Having trouble position truck for the left turn.
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Am I good enough to drive trucks on daily basis? NO, but I know enough to get that CDL inexpensively.
Study = 20 hours (self-study)
Driving = 4 hours (after hours practice in-the-head, parallel parking)
Written tests = 1 hour
Driving test = 1/2 hour
Wait in line at DPS = 2 hours
Total Costs $1,175 (Driving school charges $1,475 - if you take the study preparation)
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I peeked the driving school study guide on the Air Brake. Surprisingly the practice questions are nearly identical to the actual tests. Well - $300 prep class is worth it if you are not good at taking tests.
How did I do on the written exams - 90% plus, except the pre-trip exam. (The CDL handbook and test questions are worded differently). I thought checking for "missing, loose, broken, damage, not working" stuff was the "key", I was wrong. 81% right is good enough to pass the test.
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My truck driving school instructor keep the material short to the point, the best equipment needed to get that CDL. The costs and lesson received are well balanced.
Google "CDL Driving School
photos: hotel/apartment at Warsaw - nearby the train station
February 2011 - Class B Exempts
I was making plans to bring the bus home, the obvious question is how or am I qualified to drive this thing, and where am I going park this bus?
People said, you don't need "Class B" license to drive an RV.
I recall my same question to a local RTS bus dealer 10 years ago- He said "register the bus as an RV, the class B test is easy; you've finished college right?- you will pass the test". I didn't understand what was it all about, but his comment got me all excited - thinking owning and driving a bus can be a reality in no time.
This is for real now. I searched and searched the requirement for driving a heavy over-sized RV. It lead to the 2 important criteria when licensing the driver (a) weight of the vehicle (b) air brakes. The bottom line, every state regulates licensing differently. If you qualify to operate the vehicle by your state then the federal laws should grand you to drive the vehicle in other states.
Some states let you drive any size of RV with a Class-C, regardless of weight and air brake equipped vehicle. Some state have added endorsement requirement, and others require Class B.
Since I will driving the vehicle across several states, I shall get licensed by my home state- just in case the highway patrol officers are as confused as I was when I started my research on this topic.
Since the RTS weighs in over 26,000 lb, State of Texas is requiring CDL-Class B "exempted" license if it is converted RV or else - a full Class B CDL.
See The CDL-2 (Exemption Certification) form
It is used when operate a commercial motor vehicle that exceeds 26,000 lbs GVWR and requires a Class A or B license that is exempted by the Texas Commercial Driver License Act. RV is one of the many "exempted vehicle".
February 2011 - Class B Exempts
I was making plans to bring the bus home, the obvious question is how or am I qualified to drive this thing, and where am I going park this bus?
People said, you don't need "Class B" license to drive an RV.
I recall my same question to a local RTS bus dealer 10 years ago- He said "register the bus as an RV, the class B test is easy; you've finished college right?- you will pass the test". I didn't understand what was it all about, but his comment got me all excited - thinking owning and driving a bus can be a reality in no time.
This is for real now. I searched and searched the requirement for driving a heavy over-sized RV. It lead to the 2 important criteria when licensing the driver (a) weight of the vehicle (b) air brakes. The bottom line, every state regulates licensing differently. If you qualify to operate the vehicle by your state then the federal laws should grand you to drive the vehicle in other states.
Some states let you drive any size of RV with a Class-C, regardless of weight and air brake equipped vehicle. Some state have added endorsement requirement, and others require Class B.
Since I will driving the vehicle across several states, I shall get licensed by my home state- just in case the highway patrol officers are as confused as I was when I started my research on this topic.
Since the RTS weighs in over 26,000 lb, State of Texas is requiring CDL-Class B "exempted" license if it is converted RV or else - a full Class B CDL.
See The CDL-2 (Exemption Certification) form
It is used when operate a commercial motor vehicle that exceeds 26,000 lbs GVWR and requires a Class A or B license that is exempted by the Texas Commercial Driver License Act. RV is one of the many "exempted vehicle".
June 2009 - Class A B Driving Test
Wow, it has been 24 years since I took my first driving license exam.
I was able to renew my driver license online, and replaced lost license online too. Haven't stepped in the DMV/Department of Public Safety for the past 15 years (since the start of dot.com era), things shurely have changed.
The written tests are done on computers, but the vehicles waiting in line for driving tests are long as I've remember. May be it's summer when teenagers are eager to get their hands behind wheels during school break.
I took a long lunch break and visited DPS office. I waited for 10 minutes in the "Sign-in/Q&A line", to clarify the licensing requirement form the real McCoy. The staff went back to the office to verify the "official response" with colleagues.
Then I was handed the "driver handbook" and told to study the chapter 15 - special requirement for the written test. It's the same book I had 24 years ago, but I guess the contents must have changed/updated over time, right?
I flip to the chapter 15 and the back pages of "sample questions" - a shock finding - the single chapter had nearly 1/3 of the sample questions.
I will be visiting the DPS shortly to tackle the written test.
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