The Difference Between CDL B & CDL A
- A CDL license class indicates the weight of vehicle and trailer you may legally drive and haul. Your CDL must indicate the class of vehicle for which you are driving. You are in violation of the law if you drive or haul a different class vehicle and trailer from what your CDL allows.
- Gross weight is a term used in all CDL license classes. The term differentiates the weight of the truck and trailer with both fully loaded and includes the weight of the driver. State weigh stations are typically found along major highways. Semi-truck drivers are required by law to occasionally stop at these stations and submit to weight checks. If the gross weight of the truck, trailer and driver exceeds that for which the driver has a license--Class A or B, for example--the driver is in violation of his license and will receive a citation. It is critical that a driver carry a license indicating the appropriate class for the gross weight of the truck and trailer he is hauling.
- A Class A CDL refers to the combination of a big rig and trailer. The holder of this license is allowed to drive a CMV with a trailer where the gross trailer weight exceeds 10,000 lbs. and the combined gross weight of the truck and trailer is at least 26,001 lbs. Semis that haul trailers, certain buses and larger dump trucks that meet the specified criteria fall under this class.
- Class B licenses refer to CMVs with a gross weight of at least 26,001 lbs. that may tow trailers. For this license, the gross trailer weight must be less than 10,000 lbs. when fully loaded. Standard-sized dump trucks, passenger vans, standard-sized tow trucks, most garbage trucks and motor homes fall under this license class.
- A Class A CDL may be required to haul a load this heavy.Log semi truck image by max blain from Fotolia.com
There are differences between Class A and Class B CDLs. The most distinct difference is that drivers carrying a Class B CDL may not haul a Class A vehicle and trailer. Drivers carrying a Class A CDL, however, may also drive a Class B vehicle and trailer. The weight restriction on a trailer for a Class B CDL is lower than that of a Class A CDL. For example, the driver of a Class A may haul 6 tons of pipe on his trailer, but the driver of a Class B vehicle may not. The weight exceeds the class restriction by 2,000 lbs. A bus driver transporting a busload of passengers and hauling a trailer with a gross weight exceeding 10,000 lbs. may not carry a Class B license. Instead, he must carry a Class A CDL on his person.
