COVID-19 has brought a unique set of challenges to just about every aspect of life. Acquiring a CDL is no exception. Now, the FMCSA has put multiple exemptions in place to make it easier for people to continue earning CDLs in the time of social distancing, including no longer requiring a skills test examiner to be present in the vehicle during the test.

One of the exemptions will allow state driver licensing agencies (SDLAs) to contract out testing to third-party CDL test examiners. Private for-profit companies have not been allowed to administer skills tests in the past for numerous reasons, including fears that the companies would be incentivized to pass even applicants who do not possess the skills to operate a CMV safely.

Additionally, when skills tests are administered, examiners are no longer required to be present in the vehicle with the applicant. Instead, the FMCSA is allowing states to come up with their own solutions for how to ensure that the skills test is “comparable to AAMVA’s 2005 CDL Test System.” One suggested method is to have the truck followed by a large follow vehicle that has a recording device attached to it. Other suggested solutions include in-cab cameras, online testing, and using smartphones to see what the driver is doing while not needing to “be physically present in the cab of the vehicle.”

With many local DMVs closed or on strictly suspended hours, taking the written portion of the exam has become more difficult. The FMCSA is allowing CDL skills test examiners to conduct the written portion of the exam, waiving the requirement for them to have any training in administering the written exam.

Source: ttnews, freightwaves, freightwaves