Oversize Load Driving: What You Need to Get On the Road
Steps to Becoming an Oversize Load Truck Driver
Before you begin on the path to becoming an oversize load driver, you will want to enroll in trucking school. This will help you be more successful and comfortable hauling an oversize load. There are some basic regulations that apply to people who wish to become an oversize load driver. However, each state’s department of motor vehicles reserves the right to create its own set of rules to follow.
How To Become an Oversize Load Truck Driver
Before You Apply
- First, you must meet the minimum age requirement of at least 21 years old for commercial truck driving.
- You must hold a current, valid Commercial Driver’s license from the Department of Motor Vehicles in the state where you reside.
Applications
- Submit applications to various trucking companies that use oversize load drivers.
- Try moving companies that transport houses, mobile homes, and other buildings, these businesses typically need oversize drivers.
Testing
- Pass a criminal background check with no felony convictions.
- Pass a drug test and have no diagnosis of alcoholism in your history. Most companies deny the employment of applicants that have criminal, drug, or alcohol backgrounds. These applicants are too big a risk to invest in.
- Complete a physical examination and meet the health requirements set by the United States Department of Transportation.
- This includes a vision screening. Vision should be at least 20/40 with a 70-degree field of vision in each eye. Drivers may wear corrective contact lenses or glasses to meet this requirement.
- It also includes a hearing test. Drivers are permitted to wear hearing aids if needed.
- Take and pass a driver’s road test and present a certificate as proof of success.
Know the Laws and Regulations
- Review the laws and regulations for oversize loads within the states where you will be traveling. Each state may have its own requirements for oversize loads.
- Read the company handbook and ask about the company’s requirements for oversize load drivers; companies may have different specifications for their drivers.
