I have been on a mission to educate myself about motor homes. As part of that quest I decided to surf around the Commonwealth's Department of Motor Vehicle web site to see if a CDL license or some other classification of licence is required to drive a Class A Motor Home.

In typical fashion even though a CDL Class B license is required to drive a bus as defined

Class B
Any single vehicle with a GVWR of 26,001 pounds or more. Any single vehicle with a GVWR of 26,001 pounds or more towing another vehicle with a GVWR of 10,000 pounds or less. This class includes:

Straight trucks
Large buses
Segmented buses
Trucks towing vehicles with GVWR of 10,000 pounds or less

If you hold a class B license and you have the correct endorsements, you may also operate vehicles listed in class C.

Although their is a specific mention of having a CDL endorsement for vehicles with air brakes?

There is NO reference to any special license being required to drive, for example, a Class A 45' long diesel pusher with air brakes with a Gross Vehicle Weight in excess of twenty-two tons towing a trailer.

However, I did run across the latest published statistics for the Accident Data Base for the last reported year of 2003. It is INTERESTING, if not eye opening in a couple of areas. The two most deadly age groups. The most likely time of day to be involved in a serious or fatal accident? As well as the statistic that bears out to beware of "drunken sailors"!

What do you gleam from this report?

http://www.dmv.virginia.gov/webdoc/pdf/vacrashes_03.pdf

Inquiring minds want to know..........

 

Matt -

I'd say the RV Lobby has been very successful in Richmond.... just as they have in all of the other state capitols.

It never is about what makes sense.... it's about influence, and who has the $$$ to buy it.

It is too scary for most people to stop and think about the competence level of the folks who spent their entire lives never driving anything longer than 19', who are out there now cruising around in a 30-40' rig (longer if they are towing anything). You gotta have a special license to ride a motorcycle on the road, whether it is a CDL or something else.... there ought to be a special license required to drive a rig longer than 25'.

IMO, that should include people who are towing their boat, or anything else.

 

If it where up to me there would be a tiered licensing program to drive anything with wheels based on size, weight, length and power to weight ratio. Much like there is for pilots. I.E. Low performance single engine, high performance single engine, twin, high performance twin, multi-engine, etc.

 

I know that this is a topic for another thread, but Roy's comment made me think about something I've been seeing a lot of lately.

Have you noticed how many people driving pickups or big SUVs and towing boats or big trailers get into the left lane and just sit there. This summer I've seen much more of it than usual.

Among other things, I hate when they can't stay centered in the lane and put the trailers left wheels on the shoulder, kicking up all kinds of debris.

 

But we don't teach people to drive. You have to take it upon yourself to get the training to become even a semi-competent driver (and I'm not talking about high performance driving such as auto-x or track). We only teach people what the rules of the road are and rudimentary skills and give them a license. Why would we expect government to be more efficient at licensing RV drivers than they are about allowing almost anyone to operate an automobile?

 

One thing I did notice today as I was coming home from DC via 495 and I 95, majority of the moving vehicles were going anywhere between 65mph and 75mph. I was driving between 62-65mph and everyone passed me. It is amazing to me that people are driving so fast and using up more fuel. I seriously wonder if people equate going fast with higher fuel consumption. If I am off, someone can correct me. I am trying to see for myself if I am getting better mileage by driving between 60-65mph rather than 75+.

 

I find it curious that no one has commented on the 2003 statistics of accidents in Virginia which is really what this thread was about?

 

Even more ridiculous are the (lack of) requirements for operating boats. I don't know about other states, but CA requires only a driver's license. Why they think that being able to parallel park and signal for a lane change makes you qualified to operate a cabin cruiser is beyond me.

I've noticed how many of them seem to think they belong in the left lane because they are towing their trailer at 85 MPH.

Was there a particular stat that caught your eye? The one I noticed is that males far outnumber females in fatalities, while females slightly outnumber males in injuries. Do males just not bother with half-assed accidents, preferring to be involved in spectacular fatal wrecks?

 

Well, I'll jump in to comment about the comment regarding "drunken sailors". I think it's pretty obvious why there are more Navy people involved in crashes than other servicemembers -- there's lots more Navy in Virginia than any of the other branches of the military. If you've ever been to Norfolk you'll see that first-hand.

 

Besides the obvious statistic of younger drivers, males, people over 70 (scary) I was waiting for someone to point out the my comment about sailors. with your comment, but not the premise. As one can see that the number of sailors is way disportionate to the rest of the population.

I guess that one could make the argument that soldiers and Marines get more practice driving everyday. Whereas a sailor may not drive for three to six months at a time therefore, coupled with their relatively young age are in fact less experienced drivers when compared to their peers of the same age group.