B.C. Class 1 Knowledge Study Guide 2026

Commercial licence classes in B.C.

Endorsements are shown as codes on your licence. Code 15 is the air brake endorsement. Code 20 is the heavy trailer endorsement, which lets Class 4 or 5 drivers tow trailers over 4,600 kg when neither unit has air brakes.

Who can apply

• You must hold, or have held, a full-privilege Class 5 or 6 licence.
• You must have fewer than four penalty-point offences in the last two years.
• You must have no motor-vehicle-related Criminal Code convictions in the last three years.
• You must meet higher vision standards than for Class 5.
• Carriers must check your driving record before they hire you, and once a year after that.

Commercial licensing is done in English only, and you must complete the tests without help.

Steps to a Class 1 licence

1. Pass the commercial knowledge test. It is multiple choice, in English, and includes a traffic signs test. Arrive at least one hour before the licensing office closes.
2. Get your learner's licence. It is valid for one year.
3. Complete Class 1 MELT (mandatory entry-level training), required since October 18, 2021.
4. Pass the road test, which includes a pre-trip inspection with a written report, an air brake pre-trip, coupling and uncoupling, and driving.

Learner rules

Your supervisor must be at least 19 and hold a Class 1 licence. They sit beside you, or immediately behind and to the right if there is no seat beside the driver. In a bus, taxi, ride-hailing vehicle or ambulance, a learner may carry only the supervisor and other learners for the same class.

MELT

Class 1 MELT is a one-time requirement. Drivers from other Canadian provinces with more than 24 consecutive months of Class 1 experience, whose licence has not been expired for more than three years, do not need it. With 12 to 24 months of experience and no accepted MELT course, you get two road test attempts in B.C. before MELT is required. Drivers with licences from outside Canada must take B.C.'s MELT.

The road test

• Road tests are by appointment. Arrive at least 15 minutes early. Missing a test without 48 hours' notice or a valid reason costs a fee.
• A Class 1 road test takes about two hours.
• The vehicle must be a loaded tandem or tridem tractor-trailer with air brakes, at least 28,000 kg loaded, with a semi-trailer at least 13 m long.
• Test vehicles cannot carry dangerous goods, explosives, unbaffled liquids, dry bulk, livestock or oversized loads.
• If you test in an automatic, your licence is restricted to automatic transmissions.

Medical reports

A doctor licensed in B.C. completes a Driver's Medical Examination form and sends it to RoadSafetyBC. Routine reports are due at ages 25, 30, 35, 40 and 45, then every three years to 63 (48, 51, 54, 57, 60 and 63), then every year from 66. You must disclose medical conditions that could affect your driving.

Pre-trip inspections

Under the National Safety Code, you must do a pre-trip inspection before the first run of each day. The road test includes one even if you have already done it. Check the whole vehicle in a set order so you do not miss anything.

Weight, speed and braking

A loaded tractor-trailer can weigh up to about 63,500 kg. It may need more than 1 km and more than a minute to reach 100 km/h, so allow plenty of room when merging or crossing traffic.

• Perception time is about 3/4 of a second and reaction time another 3/4 of a second.
• Air brake lag time is about 4/10 of a second.
• Keep at least five seconds of following distance at highway speeds.
• Doubling speed needs four times the stopping power. Doubling weight needs twice the power. Doubling both needs eight times.

Normal stops heat brake parts to about 120 °C. They should not go above about 250 °C. On a long downgrade, choose a low gear before you start down. Engine retarders work best at higher engine rpm and lower road speed. If your speed rises above your safe speed, brake hard enough to cut 10 to 15 km/h while the brakes are still cool, then shift to a lower main gear, not the splitter.

• There are four main types of retarder: engine, exhaust, hydraulic driveline and electric driveline.
• In water, keep slight, steady pressure on the brakes. Afterward, brake lightly for a short distance to dry them.
• Anti-lock brakes are required on trucks and buses over 4,560 kg built since April 1, 2000, and on air-brake commercial trailers.
• Brakes that are out of adjustment can bring a fine of up to $2,000.

With eight equally loaded axles and 16 brakes, each brake does about 1/16 of the work. If one is out of adjustment, the others must work harder. A full jackknife is when the tractor and trailer form an angle of 90 degrees or less. Good driving habits can cut fuel use by up to 30%.

Hours of service

Commercial drivers in Canada follow hours-of-service rules based on the federal regulations. The main daily limits are:

Space and turning

Objects in convex mirrors look smaller and farther away than they are.

Key numbers at a glance

Sharing the road

Other drivers often do not understand how much room a heavy vehicle needs. Leave space around you, signal early and make your moves slowly and clearly. When merging, remember that a loaded tractor-trailer may need more than a kilometre to reach highway speed. Check your mirrors every few seconds, and before every lane change, turn and stop.

A simple study plan

1. Read this guide once from start to finish, without trying to memorise everything.
2. Read the matching chapters of the ICBC Driving Commercial Vehicles guide. Mark every number, limit and time you find.
3. Take the first practice test. Write down each question you get wrong and look up the rule.
4. Make a one-page list of key numbers, and test yourself on it every day.
5. Take the other practice tests until you score at least 80% every time.
6. Finish with the mock exam, timed if the real test is timed.

Short, regular study works better than one long session. Twenty or thirty minutes a day for two weeks will help you remember more than one long night before the test. Read each question to the end before you look at the answers, and watch for words like minimum, maximum, before and after.