Road Tests – Commercial Vehicles

When you feel confident you have enough driving experience, you can book a road test. Commercial road test appointments are available year-round. Road test fees are required at the time of booking and set by the Ministry of Transportation.

If you are registered with a truck training school and plan to use the training school’s truck for your road test, your training school will schedule your road test appointment. The training school must use the online block booking information to book a road test on your behalf.

All other applicants – You can book, cancel or reschedule a road test appointment:

• online
• by phone at 647-776-0331 or 1-888-570-6110
• at a DriveTest Centre

If you cannot attend your scheduled road test, you must cancel your appointment at least 48 hours in advance or you will lose your prepaid road test fee (some exceptions apply).

It’s common to take a commercial road test and an air brake practical test on the same day. When you book, indicate whether you want to take the tests together.

Prepaid examination fees can be used up to six years from the date of payment.  Any fees not used after six years are non-refundable.

You must arrive 30 minutes early to complete check-in procedures and must ensure you have all the pre-test requirements listed below.

While most centers have a self-serve kiosk for road test check-in, these kiosks are currently being used for Class G2 and Class G road tests only.

When you arrive for your test, please park your vehicle in a safe location and check-in for your test at the Front Desk/Counter A. Approach an agent directly. Check-in with an agent is required to avoid delays or cancellation of your road test appointment.

After check-in, return to your parked vehicle (or travel to the offsite testing location, if applicable) and wait for the examiner. If you are completing a road test at a DriveTest Centre and your Driver Examiner does not arrive at your vehicle within 30 minutes of your appointment time, please return to the building and proceed to Counter A. If you are completing a road test at an offsite testing location and your Driver Examiner does not arrive at your vehicle within 30 minutes of your appointment time, please call 1-888-570-6110, press 2 and follow the prompts to transfer to the main DriveTest Centre to speak to a Customer Service Agent.

No pets or passengers other than the examiner are allowed in the vehicle during a road test. Passengers will be asked to wait in a designated safe area.

Please review the pre-test requirements listed below. If you fail to meet these requirements, your road test will be canceled and you will lose 50% of your pre-paid road test fee:

• • For full Class A road tests only – mandatory entry-level training must be completed and recorded on your driver’s record prior to the road test.
  • Manual transmission that consists of at least eight forward gears with a high-low range
  • Your vehicle must be in good working order and must not have any major defects as listed under Regulation 199/07.
  • Your vehicle must have the required valid vehicle inspection sticker(s) (annual or semi-annual). This includes a rental vehicle.
  • You must have a valid daily inspection report and schedule for your vehicle.
  • You must book the correct class of test.

You must bring with you the following:

• • Wheel chocks or blocks – Class A (including Class AR) and any vehicle equipped with air brakes.
  • Means of keeping time to measure seconds – Any vehicle equipped with air brakes.
  • A means of holding the brake pedal in the applied position – Any vehicle equipped with air brakes.
  • A device for measuring pushrod stroke (tape measure or ruler) – Class A/D with air brakes.

Note: Protective headgear/eyewear, a chart of brake adjustment limits, and a means of marking the pushrod (chalk or similar) are recommended but not mandatory.

DriveTest Centres do not provide vehicles. The vehicle you use for your road test can be owned, borrowed, or rented but must be insured. It does not need to be a driving school vehicle. If applicable to the licence you are pursuing, the vehicle should include the trailer, but the trailer should not be loaded.

As a preparatory measure, make plans for getting home after the road test if you are unsuccessful. You may want to invite an accompanying driver or investigate options for alternate transportation.

Before you begin your road test, the examiner will explain how the road test will be conducted. The examiner is not allowed to provide advice during the road test; however, the examiner will provide directions, such as “stop,” “turn left,” “turn right,” and none of the directions will involve illegal actions. If you have any questions, please ask them before you begin your road test.

Please refer to the Official MTO Handbook for further details about your road test.

The air brake practical test is completed in a parking lot and takes approximately 30 minutes.

There are two versions of the practical test, depending on the class of licence you already hold and are pursuing. If you are attempting the Class AZ, you will complete testing which includes the trailer air brake system. For all other classes, your test will not include the trailer air brake system.

If you completed an MTO-approved air brake endorsement course, you must visit a DriveTest Centre within six months of completion to add the Z endorsement to your licence.

Drivers completing a practical air brake test (Z endorsement) must bring the following items:

• Wheel chocks or blocks.
• A stopwatch or a watch with a second hand.
• Awareness of the size and type of all brake chambers on the vehicle in which they are being tested.
• A means of holding the brake pedal in the applied position.
• A means of marking the pushrod and measuring pushrod stroke (does not apply to motor coaches).
• Protective headgear and eyewear (optional).
• A chart of brake-adjustment limits (optional).

See the Official MTO Air Brake Handbook for more information.

If you are unsuccessful in completing the Air Brake practical test, you will be unable to proceed with your commercial road test.

Commercial Road Tests (Classes A, B, C, D, E, and F)

Effective July 1, 2017, the knowledge and road tests for all commercial class licences (Class A, B, C, D, E, and F) were updated to ensure that applicants demonstrate the knowledge and skills required to safely operate a commercial vehicle. To prepare for these tests, please refer to the Official MTO Handbook online or a hard copy version with a publication date of January 2017 or later.

As part of your commercial class road test, you will be required to complete the following tests:

Daily Vehicle Inspection

You are encouraged to refer to the schedule for your vehicle as necessary during the daily vehicle inspection component of the test:

• You will be required to inspect six randomly generated items from the schedule, demonstrate and describe how each item should be inspected, explain any potential defect(s) and describe what actions you would take upon identifying the defect.
• There will also be an in-cab check portion of the test where you must point to or touch all items, as listed in the Official MTO Handbook, and demonstrate and describe how each item should be inspected.
• For the in-cab portion, you will not be required to explain any potential defect(s) or describe what action you would take upon identifying a minor/major defect.

Uncoupling and Coupling (for Class A only):

• You will be required to demonstrate your ability to safely uncouple and couple a truck/tractor and trailer. Refer to the Official MTO Handbook for further details.

On-road Driving:

• You will be expected to drive in a variety of traffic situations including; left and right turns, intersections, lane changes, curves, expressway driving, and a roadside stop/start.
• At all times during the test, you must obey all traffic signs, signals, and laws, drive in a safe and responsible manner, and wear your safety belt.

Backing:

• You will be required to perform one backing maneuver during the test, either a 90-degree alley dock (driver’s side), an offset left, or offset right.

The examiner must exercise care to prevent injury to you, other motorists, pedestrians, or themselves. If it becomes obvious at any time during the road test that you lack the necessary skills to operate a motor vehicle, your test will be terminated. You will immediately be disqualified and lose your prepaid road test fee.

At the end of your road test, the examiner will review the road test with you, discussing both strengths and weaknesses and inform you if you were successful in obtaining a commercial driver’s licence. You may also refer to the back of the scoresheet for more information about the scoring of your road test.

You must be successful in all components of the test to pass the road test and obtain a commercial driver’s licence.

To successfully complete your road test, you must demonstrate safe operation of your vehicle, not commit any moving violations and successfully complete all the road test components meeting the criteria below:

• Daily Inspection Test – Allowed to make errors for 1 item
• Uncoupling and Coupling (for Class A only) – Allowed up to 2 errors in total for both uncoupling and coupling and must complete the coupling using not more than 5 pull-ups
• On-road and Backing Skills Test – Allowed up to 30 errors and must complete the backing in less than 10 minutes

If you are successful, you must go into the DriveTest Centre to receive your temporary driver’s licence, which is valid for 90 days or until your permanent driver’s licence arrives in the mail.

If you are unsuccessful, you may schedule and take another test when you feel you are ready; however you must wait at least 10 days between tests.