On Tuesday, the FMCSA issued a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) aimed at enhancing testing efficiency and flexibility for individuals seeking a commercial driver’s license (CDL) or commercial learner’s permit (CLP).

The proposed changes by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) aim to offer more flexibility to CDL applicants. Among these changes is a provision allowing learner’s permit holders to operate without a CDL holder in the passenger seat once they have passed their skills test. The agency asserts that these proposed modifications will enable applicants to obtain a CDL and become employed as a commercial motor vehicle (CMV) driver more efficiently without compromising safety.

According to the agency, these proposals are expected to enhance the efficiency and convenience of CDL issuance, provide necessary flexibility for CLP holders who have demonstrated their ability to safely operate a CMV by passing the CDL skills test, improve highway safety by ensuring the integrity of third-party CDL knowledge testing, and offer flexibility in the transport of empty passenger CMVs from manufacturers to distributors or in driveaway-towaway operations.

One significant aspect of the NPRM pertains to CLP holders who have successfully passed the CDL skills test. Presently, a CDL holder must be present in the front passenger seat of a CMV to supervise CLP holders operating a CMV on public roads and highways. If the proposed rule is enacted, CLP holders who have passed the CDL skills test would be permitted to operate a CMV for any reason, provided that a CDL holder is physically present in the CMV, the CLP driver has passed the CDL skills test, and the driver possesses documentary evidence from the testing state confirming the CDL skills test passage.

The FMCSA explained, “Once the CLP holder has passed the skills test and, thus, demonstrated their ability to safely operate a CMV, the current restriction limiting CLP holders to CMV operation only for the purpose of behind-the-wheel (BTW) training would no longer be necessary. Because these drivers have already met all the requirements for a CDL, but have yet to obtain the CDL document from their state of domicile, their safety performance would be comparable to that of newly-credentialed CDL holders. Additionally, having a CDL driver accompany the CLP driver who has successfully passed all required CDL skills testing and prerequisites provides some additional supervision that is otherwise not required for newly-credentialed CDL drivers in physical possession of the CDL document.”

The NPRM also suggests additional rule changes that would impact CDL applicants.