CDL School

Slow down to a safe speed, and downshift to the right gear before entering the curve. This lets you use some power through the curve to help the vehicle be more stable while turning. It also allows you to speed up as soon as you are out of the curve.

Air brakes are three different systems: service brake, parking brake, and emergency brake.

Protect the accident area: if your vehicle is involved in the accident, try to get it to the side of the road, if you're stopping to help, park away from the accident, put on your flashers, and set out reflective triangles to warn other traffic.

When you're in an accident and not seriously hurt, you need to act to prevent further damage or injury. The basic steps to be taken in any accident are to: protect the area, notify authorities, and care for the injured.

Blocking is used in the front, back, and/or sides of a piece of cargo to keep it from sliding. Blocking is shaped to fit snugly against cargo. It is secured to the cargo deck to prevent cargo movement.

Hauling liquids in tanks requires special skills because of the high center of gravity and liquid movement.

Most good drivers look at least 12 to 15 seconds ahead. That means looking ahead at the distance you will travel in 12 to 15 seconds. At lower speeds, that's about one block. At highway speeds it's about a quarter of a mile.

Basic method for shifting up: release accelerator, push in clutch and shift to neutral at the same time. Release clutch. Let the engine and gears slow down to the rpm required for the next gear. Push in clutch and shift to the higher gear at the same time. Release clutch and press accelerator at the same time.

Tire problems include: too much or too little air pressure, bad wear, at least 4/32-inch tread depth on front tires, 2/32 inch on all other tires, no fabric should show through the tread or sidewall, cuts or other damage, tread separation, dual tires that come in contact with each other or parts of the vehicle, mismatched sizes, radial and bias-ply tires used together.

Front-end header boards ("headache racks") protect you from your cargo in case of a crash or emergency stop. The front-end structure should block the forward movement of any cargo you carry.

You should brake in a way that will keep your vehicle in a straight line and allow you to turn if it becomes necessary. You can use the "controlled braking" method or the "stab braking" method. 

In a front-wheel skid, the front end tends to go in a straight line regardless of how much you turn the steering wheel.

Use windshield washer antifreeze to prevent freezing of the washer liquid.

Preventing drowsiness before a trip: Get adequate sleep (8 to 9 hours), prepare route, schedule trips for the hours you are normally awake, drive with a passenger, avoid medications that cause drowsiness.

When driving a loud bang, vibrations, or heavy steering can indicate that a tire has failed.

Don't over steer, over accelerate, or over brake by adjusting to conditions while driving. These include traction, curves, visibility, traffic and hills.

You must review the inspection report made by the previous driver. Only if defects reported earlier have been certified as repaired or not needed to be repaired, should you sign the previous driver's report.

Most vehicles now have an ABS light on the instrument panel that will light up briefly when the vehicle is started to alert you that the vehicle has ABS, you can check to see if the vehicle was built on or after March 1, 1998, or you can check for wires from your brakes.

Too much weight on the steering axle can cause hard steering. It can damage the steering axle and tires.

Before you change lanes, you must first make sure that no vehicles are hiding in your blind spots.

If an oncoming driver has drifted into your lane, a move to your right is best. If that driver realizes what has happened, the natural response will be to return to their own lane. No one is likely to be driving on the shoulder, but someone may be passing you on the left.

In a front-wheel skid, the front end tends to go in a straight line regardless of how much you turn the steering wheel. On a very slippery surface, you may not be able to steer around a curve or turn.

The total stopping distance is the total minimum distance your vehicle has traveled, in ideal conditions; with everything considered, including perception distance, reaction distance and braking distance, until you can bring your vehicle to a complete stop. At 55 mph, your vehicle will travel a minimum of 450 feet.

All vehicles with air brakes have a pressure gauge connected to the air tank. If the vehicle has a dual air brake system, there will be a gauge for each half of the system.

Heavy vehicles are often tailgated when they can't keep up with the speed of traffic. This often happens when you're going uphill. If a heavy load is slowing you down, stay in the right lane if you can. Going uphill, you should not pass another slow vehicle unless you can get around quickly and safely.

Converter dollies built on or after March 1, 1998, are required to have antilock brakes. These dollies will have a yellow lamp on the left side of the dolly.

 If possible, avoid using the brakes until your speed has dropped to about 20 mph, and gently return to the road.

Explanation - For an e-route inspection: check the tires, wheels, and truck body for signs of heat whenever you stop during a trip.

Because you cannot see everything behind your vehicle, backing is always dangerous. Avoid backing whenever you can. When you must back, here are a few simple safety rules: Start in the proper position, look at your path, use mirrors on both sides, back slowly, back and turn toward the driver's side whenever possible, and use a helper with clear hand signals whenever possible.

Explanation: Don't roll back when you start. You may hit someone behind you. If you have a manual transmission vehicle, partly engage the clutch before you take your right foot off the brake. Put on the parking brake whenever necessary to keep it from rolling back. Release the parking brake only when you have applied enough engine power to keep from rolling back 

Use either the tachometer or the speedometer and upshift/downshift at the right rpm or road speed.

Whether or not you load and secure the cargo yourself, you are responsible for inspecting your cargo, recognizing overloads and poorly balanced weight, knowing your cargo is properly secured and does not obscure your view ahead or to the sides, knowing your cargo does not restrict your access to emergency equipment.

Do not try to downshift after your speed has already built up. You will not be able to shift into a lower gear. You may not even be able to get back into any gear and all engine braking effect will be lost.

Inspect the cargo and its securing devices again within the first 50 miles after beginning a trip. You need to inspect again after you have driven for 3 hours or 150 miles and after every break you take while driving.

Short breaks can keep your alert. But the time to take them is before you feel really drowsy or tired. Stop often. Walk around and inspect your vehicle. It may help to do some physical exercise.

Driving too fast is a major cause of fatal crashes. You must adjust your speed depending on driving conditions. These include traction, curves, visibility, traffic, and hills.

Explanation: A skid happens whenever the tires lose their grip on the road. Most serious skids result from driving too fast for road conditions. Drivers who adjust their driving to conditions don't over-accelerate and don't have to over-brake or oversteer from too much speed. 

Explanation: If you stop on a two-lane road carrying traffic in both directions or on an undivided highway, place warning devices within 10 feet of the front or rear corners to mark the location of the vehicle and 100 feet behind and ahead of the vehicle, on the shoulder or in the lane you stopped in.

Rear wheel braking skids occur when the rear drive wheels lock. Because locked wheels have less traction than rolling wheels, the rear wheels usually slide sideways in an attempt to "catch up" with the front wheels. With vehicles towing trailers, a drive-wheel skid can let the trailer push the towing vehicle sideways, causing a sudden jackknife.

Poor weight balance can make vehicle handling unsafe. The cargo should be loaded so that it is balanced in the cargo area.

Low air warning devices (buzzer, light, flag) should activate before air pressure drops below 60 psi or level specified by the manufacturer.

To know how much space you have, wait until the vehicle ahead passes a shadow on the road, a pavement marking, or some other clear landmark. Then count off the seconds like this: "one thousand-and-one, one thousand-and-two" and so on, until you reach the same spot.

Explanation: Use high beams when it is safe and legal to do so. Use them when you are not within 500 feet of an approaching vehicle. 

Explanation: Warn following drivers by flashing your brake lights, don't stop suddenly. If you see a hazard that will require slowing down, warn the drivers behind by flashing your brake lights. At dawn, dusk, in rain, or snow, you need to make yourself easier to see so turn on your lights. 

Remember that when the road is slippery, you need much more space to stop, and should keep more space in front of your vehicle.

Air pressure increases with temperature. Do not let air out or the pressure will be too low when the tires cool off.

The tire load is the maximum safe weight a tire can carry at a specified pressure. This rating is stated on the side of each tire.

Empty trucks actually require greater stopping distances because an empty vehicle has less traction. It can bounce and lock up its wheels, giving much poorer braking.