Getting started
How to judge a CDL school before you pay one
The checks that actually matter: registry listing, yard and truck ratio, a written total price, and who holds your financing. Plus the red flags worth walking over.
6 min read
Getting started
What the road from no license to a Class A actually looks like, step by step.
Getting started
How long it really takes to get a CDL
Three to four weeks of training is the honest number, but the calendar starts earlier. Here is every step that adds days, and the ones you cannot speed up.
5 min read
Getting started
Automatic or manual: the restriction that follows you
Test in an automatic and your CDL carries an E restriction barring you from manual trucks. What that closes off, what removing it takes, and how to decide.
5 min read
Getting started
ELDT: the federal training rule nobody explains to you
Entry-Level Driver Training is a federal requirement with no minimum hours and one hard rule: the school must be on FMCSA's registry or your training does not count.
5 min read
Getting started
The commercial learner permit, explained
What a CLP is, what you must pass to get one, the 14-day wait before your road test, and the rules that quietly restrict what you can do while you hold it.
5 min read
Getting started
Class A vs Class B: what each one lets you drive
The weight ratings that separate Class A from Class B, the jobs behind each license, and what it costs in time and money to upgrade from B to A later.
5 min read
Getting started
What a CDL is, and which one you actually need
A CDL is a state license held to federal standards. Here is what triggers the requirement, what the three classes cover, and which one fits the job you want.
5 min read
Getting started
How to get a Class A CDL, start to finish
The real order of operations for a Class A CDL: medical card, permit, federal training, road test. What each step takes, and the two places people stall out.
6 min read