Since each state issues CDLs, FMCSA, in concert with the states, maintains a national database of CDL licenses, so a driver should not be able to obtain multiple licenses, and a driver with a suspended or revoked license in one state is precluded from continuing to drive a truck with a license from a different state. To qualify for this endorsement, they must demonstrate additional knowledge and skills beyond those required for the basic CDL.
For example, drivers of multiple-trailer trucks or any truck carrying hazardous materials must have the appropriate endorsement. Endorsements to the CDL are required for certain categories of truck and load type. The requirements for a valid CDL are set nationally, while each state regulates CDL testing and issues the licenses. Any driver of a truck with a 26,001 or more lb gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) must have a valid commercial driver 's license (CDL). As a result, driver licensing requirements differ depending on the type of truck, as well as the type of load (discussed below). Trucks are crucial not only in the transportation industry but also in many other sectors, such as agriculture, construction, and warehousing.Īs shown in Table 2-2, truck drivers operate a variety of types of trucks. freight by weight and a much higher percentage by value. households with access to manufactured goods, and business establishments rely on freight transportation to move their raw materials and finished products. Department of Transportation, 2014, Table 2-1). Passenger traffic is handled primarily by private automobiles (80%), planes (12%), trains (1%), and buses (7%) ( U.S. Transportation in the United States occurs by road, rail, air, and waterways (boats) and can be broadly categorized into passenger and freight transportation. The chapter also touches on the attitudes in both industries toward driver fatigue and health and wellness programs and the information available on demographic and anthropometric variables with regard to CMV drivers. trucking and bus industries and provides a brief description of the lifestyles of CMV drivers and the policies and practices that influence driver fatigue and health. Nonetheless, to help the reader understand the population regulated by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), this chapter reviews characteristics of the U.S. Given this diversity, it is difficult to make simple statements about the relationship of such factors as work hours and periods of rest to fatigue among commercial motor vehicle (CMV) drivers and about drivers' long-term health.
Considerable heterogeneity in the truck and bus industries stems from operational characteristics ranging from fleet size and employer type to work schedules and on-the-job activities. Truck and bus operations in the United States are as diverse as the U.S.