How do you get the semi-tractor driver's license?

Answer 1

If you're in the US, the license is called a Commercial Drivers License. The first thing you need to do is to apply to a driving school. They want to know things like how many drivers licenses you've had in the last 10 years (if you move from state to state you need to change your license), your driving record and your criminal record.

On your first day of driving school you'll take your Department of Transportation physical and drug screen. If you pass both, you will learn things like the rules of the road and the workings of a truck--specifically the brakes, which the state tests you on.


You next go to the Department of Motor Vehicles and take some written tests. My CDL is from Texas, so I'll tell you what they require. You will take five tests: Permit. General Knowledge, Air Brakes, Combination Vehicles and Pretrip Inspection. (Texas is unusual in that they have a written PTI test; most states make you do a hands-on PTI.) Once you pass all five tests, you can start your hands-on driving training.


During your training you will learn how to do straight backs, angled backs, right and left turns, parallel parks, and of course how to drive on the open road. The state makes you parallel park the truck on the road test, although you very rarely ever do it on the road.


Once you're ready, you take your hands-on test. States can give you four hands-on tests: pretrip inspection, air brake test, range test and road test. (My school was accredited to give the range test, so the state didn't have to do it.) The air brake test is critical, and it's easy to do: run the engine until the air pressure is up to about 110-120psi. Shut down and step on the brakes, and hold the pedal down for a minute. Watch the number-one supply pressure gauge; if it drops less than 2psi for a straight truck, or 4psi for a combination, you're fine. Then start pumping the brakes. You should get a Low Air Pressure light and buzzer at 60psi. The trailer brake button should pop out at 40psi, and the tractor brake should pop out at 20psi. Next, you go out with the examiner and drive a road course with left and right turns, straight driving and a parallel park. You need to name all the bridge clearances. Some inspectors want to hear you name all the signs you see.


If you do all that correctly, you finish by giving the state a lot of your money, and you're a licensed driver!