The Commercial Motor Vehicle Safety Act of 1986
The real turning point came with the Commercial Motor Vehicle Safety Act of 1986. This act established the CDL program nationwide. As a research paper from the University of California, Berkeley describes, this law standardized the requirements for driving commercial vehicles, essentially creating the modern CDL. The Act’s goal was to improve highway safety by ensuring drivers were competent and qualified to operate commercial vehicles.
One stated goal was to eliminate illiteracy amongst commercial drivers.
This was done by administering a series of multiple-choice written tests, followed by a series of "behind-the-wheel" skill and road tests according to the requirements each individual driver needed. I.e. straight truck, combination, tanker, haz-mat, etc.
I remember not long after, the state of New York said that this law was going to "shut down NY." They began to issue "take home" driver's tests.
Pennsylvania began "Oral" tests and eventually "oral" tests in Spanish.
Older drivers were "grandfathered" in... only needing to take the written tests with no behind the wheel testing required.
The Commercial Motor Vehicle Safety Act of 1986 The real turning point came with the Commercial Motor Vehicle Safety Act of 1986. This act established the CDL program nationwide. As a research paper from the University of California, Berkeley describes, this law standardized the requirements for driving commercial vehicles, essentially creating the modern CDL. The Act’s goal was to improve highway safety by ensuring drivers were competent and qualified to operate commercial vehicles.
One stated goal was to eliminate illiteracy amongst commercial drivers.
This was done by administering a series of multiple-choice written tests, followed by a series of "behind-the-wheel" skill and road tests according to the requirements each individual driver needed. I.e. straight truck, combination, tanker, haz-mat, etc.
I remember not long after, the state of New York said that this law was going to "shut down NY." They began to issue "take home" driver's tests.
Pennsylvania began "Oral" tests and eventually "oral" tests in Spanish.
Older drivers were "grandfathered" in... only needing to take the written tests with no behind the wheel testing required.