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Texas Class A or B License Upgrade FAQs


David-and-Cheryl

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Oledog3,

Unfortunately I did not speak to the supervisor directly, the young lady I was talking to following the test took the initiative to ask a couple supervisors. I might have been sounding a little frustrated since I notice a few other people looking at me while I was explaining why the air brake test should not apply. She did not know an air brake from an electric brake. 

Best Regards,

Wanderers

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Oledog3,

I went to Texas.gov and TxDPS.gov and did not find any public accessible information on what tests are required for the Class A exempt. You could try calling the DPS service during the work week, working through the menus until you talk to a human and see if they can point you to the requirements. They really need to do a better job of explaining the requirements for RVers. I had to educate the folks at United RV because they did not know about the requirements for when their clients might require a Class A or B exempt license. If the RV dealerships don't know, how can they expect the rest of us to know?

I know the Texas legislature was working on a bill to allow for CDL type training facilities for RVers. But never heard what happened to that bill. 

Best Regards,

The Wanderers

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OLEDOG, a "no air brake equipped vehicle" restriction (restriction "L") is a CDL only restriction. Try asking why you would need to take a test to remove a restriction that does not apply to a non commercial vehicle and therefore you can not have on your (non commercial) drivers license.

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On 4/27/2018 at 9:03 PM, Wanderers said:

Maybe David and Cheryl have more references to the code they can provide.

Oh how I wish I did. But as far as I know, the information about which written tests you have to take is just "oral knowledge" that is not available in writing anywhere that's accessible to the public.

Getting to Livingston is unfortunately often not practical, given the size of our state. So my best advice is to visit the DPS office where you plan to take your written test, and ask them if they know what test you're supposed to take for the Class A or B exempt license. If you get the right answer (even if you have to consult with a supervisor to get there), take the test. If you don't, and they want you to take the air brakes test or something else you shouldn't have to do, maybe try visiting a different office if there's one close-ish to you.

David

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Thanks to everyone for the feedback.  I took the combo test today (couple of online practice test actually made it easy) after hearing their new argument of "combination test is required as of April 18"  I'm not sure I believe it.  I spoke to Austin office and they could not confirm....nor deny that info.  I needed it done, so I played their game and did it their way.   Just waiting for the drive test to be scheduled, as they had trouble doing that too. Thus the fun continues.   SMH

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I took the written test today at the Baytown location.  Very friendly and helpful people working there.  I only took the required Texas CVO Knowledge Test which is over Chapter 14.  I made 100 on the test.  I was in and out in less than a couple of hours.  I am scheduled for the road test the week after next.  Now I can forget all the irrelevant data that I would never use again.

Thanks everybody for all their help.

Jaime

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I went to Bowie yesterday to take the written test, and was informed that Texas DPS issued a directive last week adding the Combination test for the Class A exempt.  Took the General Knowledge (chapter 14) yesterday, and the Combination (chapter 6) test today.  Both pretty easy with the online practice tests.  Scheduled for the driving test in Bowie the first week of June.  Other than the inconvenience, I am really seeing the value of the additional licensing.

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I took the driving test in Baytown this morning.  All went well.  I had to do the backup in a straight line then drove for about 20 minutes.  Tester did a great job and was very helpful.  Passed the driving test without a problem.

Jaime

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  • 1 month later...

When it came time to research what needed to be done to attain the Class A CDL Exempt license I was blown away at how difficult it is to find information. David and Cheryl Thank You! This was the post that pulled it all together for me. I am sure many more will find their way here in the future, so I thought to add a few more tidbits to this thread. It's been almost two years since your original post and it still applies as of today 07-08-2018.

On the list of places one can take the driving skills test, the Mega Center in Rosenberg Texas is not on the DPS list, however, they do in fact do all of the testing there. I just completed the written and driving exam there, all in the same week. The driving exam takes you around some local roads. No crazy turns or obstacles.

Also just for clarity, there is a requirement that both the front and rear license plates must be on the towing vehicle that you are using. I did find lots of debate around this regarding a vehicle with temporary plates. I had a new vehicle with temporary plates and no sticker in the windshield. This was not an issue at all as long as you have the paper from the dealer showing the temporary plates registration and that the title/registration was applied for. This document did not contain the GVWR, this was not an issue.

I held a Class A CDL for 15 years, it was replaced by DPS out of the blue shortly after I stopped driving, and replaced via the mail with a Class C. I still had to do all of the Class A CDL Exempt steps outlined in this thread in order to get the Class A back. The CDL however is gone and I would have to retake all of those tests apparently if I wanted the Commercial back. No thanks.

Kudos again for this thread. It really was the best and most thorough explanation that I could find on the web. It's nice to know that one is now legal when it comes to duallys and big travel trailers that put us over the 26,001lbs.

 Cheers

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4 hours ago, Reido113 said:

It really was the best and most thorough explanation that I could find on the web

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7 hours ago, Reido113 said:

When it came time to research what needed to be done to attain the Class A CDL Exempt license I was blown away at how difficult it is to find information. David and Cheryl Thank You! This was the post that pulled it all together for me. ...

Kudos again for this thread. It really was the best and most thorough explanation that I could find on the web. It's nice to know that one is now legal when it comes to duallys and big travel trailers that put us over the 26,001lbs.

Thank you for your kind words! I'm really glad you found it helpful. One of these days, I'm going to turn the original post (with updates from the community) into an article for Escapees magazine. 

By the way, if you haven't already joined the Escapees RV Club, I hope you do. You'll become part of a one-of-a-kind community of RVers.

David

David & Cheryl - SKP #126793
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On 5/2/2018 at 1:14 PM, OLEDOG3 said:

Thanks to everyone for the feedback.  I took the combo test today (couple of online practice test actually made it easy) after hearing their new argument of "combination test is required as of April 18"  I'm not sure I believe it.  I spoke to Austin office and they could not confirm....nor deny that info.  I needed it done, so I played their game and did it their way.   Just waiting for the drive test to be scheduled, as they had trouble doing that too. Thus the fun continues.   SMH

Son and myself took the Class A exempt test in Spring mega center. We were both required to take the combination test (sec 6) in addition to the sec 14 test. Neither of us were prepared for the sec 6 as the forum we were on was adamant that sec 6 was not required. We both argued with our different DMV people to no avail and flunked the sec 6 part. Wish I would have found this forum earlier.   

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1 hour ago, sgrol said:

Son and myself took the Class A exempt test in Spring mega center. We were both required to take the combination test (sec 6) in addition to the sec 14 test. Neither of us were prepared for the sec 6 as the forum we were on was adamant that sec 6 was not required. We both argued with our different DMV people to no avail and flunked the sec 6 part. Wish I would have found this forum earlier.   

I have just updated the original post to indicate that the Combinations test is now probably required, as of April 18.

Edited by David-and-Cheryl

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Could someone who has taken the CDL Combinations knowledge test answer these questions for me, so that I can include the information in the original post?

  1. How many questions are on the Combinations test?
  2. How much time were you given to take the Combinations test?
  3. What is the minimum passing score for the Combinations test? (I assume it's 70%, but want to confirm.)

Thanks,

David

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16 minutes ago, sbpierce said:

The test was twenty questions and I believe you have the same 8 hours allowed.  The minimum score is 70%.  The online study guide makes it a breeze.  I got a 100 in less than 10 minutes.

Would you have a link to the study guide? Thanks.

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1 hour ago, sbpierce said:

The test was twenty questions and I believe you have the same 8 hours allowed.  The minimum score is 70%.  The online study guide makes it a breeze.  I got a 100 in less than 10 minutes.

Thanks!

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1 hour ago, sgrol said:

Would you have a link to the study guide? Thanks.

http://cdlstudybuddy.com/combinationvehicles.php is one. There are quite a few others; you can Google "Texas CDL combinations practice test".

David & Cheryl - SKP #126793
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2020 Ford F-450 Platinum

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I used 2 or 3 sites, and the best one had 100 question tests.  The questions were identical.  Unfortunately, I won't have access to that computer for a few days.  I will update ASAP.  A Google search of 100 question TX combination test might show some results.  On another note, I took my driving test in Vernon last week.  It was a very positive experience, and I highly recommend it if convenient.  Sharon is the only employee in the office and does everything, and does it well.

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A Texas RVer told me on Facebook that the DPS has just greatly streamlined the skills test scheduling process. According to him, after you pass the knowledge test, a DPS employee will register you in the new Texas DPS Drive Test Scheduling System. You'll log in with your driver's license number, date of birth and email address. Once logged in, you can choose the license type you're testing for and the geographic area in which you want to take the test. The system will then show you available dates and times for your test and let you book an appointment.

Although I can view the login page for this new system, I can't actually try it. If you have recently or will soon take your Class A or B Exempt knowledge test, please reply and let us know (1) whether you were instructed to use the new system, and (2) exactly what the procedure was once you logged in. I'll then update the original post with this additional information.

It's not yet clear if all DPS offices are using the new system, so if you don't get specific instructions for it after you pass your knowledge test, be sure to ask. If they have no idea what you're talking about, you might still need to use the scheduling procedure in the original post.

-David

David & Cheryl - SKP #126793
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The system works exactly as you describe.  I was given a slip of paper after my 2nd test with the link and instructions.  After booking my original drive test, I did the following:

Booked my original appointment 

Cancelled my original appointment 

Rescheduled my appointment

Continually checked for better appointments and changed when available

Searched other offices for better appointments

Cancelled appointment and rescheduled at another office for more optimal time.

The system works amazingly well, and changes as soon as someone else cancels their appointment.  I got an appointment for July 5 on July 3 at 8pm that wasn't available when I checked 30 minutes earlier.

Hope that helps

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