Burkina Faso Permis C (Poids Lourd) common mistakes
Burkina Faso Permis C (Poids Lourd) · Understand the traps and how to avoid them.
Approaching a stop sign or a red light without bringing the loaded truck to a complete stop, treating the stop as a slow-down because the vehicle is heavy and slow to restart.
Candidates transfer car habits to the truck, and the effort of restarting a loaded vehicle on a slope makes them reluctant to stop fully; they also misjudge the stopping distance added by the load.
What to do instead
Drill the rule that a stop line means zero wheel rotation regardless of load; before each intersection, plan a gear and a gap so restarting is not a reason to roll through, and practise hill starts with a full load until the clutch and parking brake sequence is automatic.
Ignoring or misreading height and weight restriction signs and road markings on the route, such as a low bridge clearance or a tonnage limit on a rural road.
Candidates focus on directional signs and overlook regulatory plates, and they do not habitually compare the sign value with the vehicle's actual height and PTAC before committing to the road.
What to do instead
Build a pre-route checklist: know the truck's exact height, width, PTAC and PTRA, and read every restriction sign aloud against those figures before entering the road; during training, call out each restriction sign and the comparison.
Following the vehicle ahead too closely on open road, leaving less than the safety margin needed for a loaded truck's braking distance.
Candidates keep the two-second gap they learned for a car and underestimate how much a heavy vehicle's mass and load extend stopping distance, especially on laterite or gravel surfaces common outside cities.
What to do instead
Apply a time gap of at least three to four seconds and double it in rain, dust or on unpaved road; pick a fixed roadside marker, count the seconds after the vehicle ahead passes it, and adjust immediately if the count is short.
Neglecting the daily pre-departure walk-around: skipping checks of tyre pressure and tread, brake air pressure build-up, lights, load lashings and fluid levels before driving.
Candidates treat the inspection as a formality to recite rather than a physical routine, and time pressure at depots encourages skipping it.
What to do instead
Perform and verbalise a fixed sequence every time: tyres and wheels, air pressure gauge and leak test, lights and indicators, coupling and lashings, fluids, mirrors and wipers; the examiner should see hands on each item, not a memorised list.
Riding the brakes on long descents instead of using engine braking and a low gear, letting brake drums or discs overheat.
Candidates fear over-revving the engine and rely on the foot brake as in a car, not understanding fade and the loss of stopping power on a loaded truck.
What to do instead
Before the descent, select a gear low enough that the engine holds the speed, use the retarder or exhaust brake where fitted, and brake in short firm applications; if fade is felt, stop safely and let the brakes cool rather than pressing harder.
Loading or accepting a load that exceeds the PTAC or the per-axle limits, or distributing it so the rear axle is overloaded and the steering axle is light.
Candidates count only the total weight and ignore axle distribution, and they accept a shipper's word on tonnage without checking a weighbridge ticket or the load plan.
What to do instead
Check the weighbridge ticket against PTAC and each axle's rated load before departure, place heavy items over or ahead of the drive axles, and refuse or redistribute the load when a limit is exceeded.
Driving without the required transport documents in order, or with an expired or mismatched waybill, insurance, technical inspection or driver qualification.
Candidates assume the owner or dispatcher handles paperwork and never verify that the documents in the cab match the vehicle, the load and the validity dates.
What to do instead
Before departure, confirm the waybill matches the actual goods and weight, and that registration, insurance, technical inspection and licence categories are valid and present in the cab; keep them in one folder checked at each trip start.
Exceeding daily driving time or cutting short the mandatory break and daily rest, often by starting early after a late arrival.
Candidates underestimate cumulative driving time across short trips and stops, and commercial pressure pushes them to compress rest without recording it correctly.
What to do instead
Plan the day around the legal driving limit and required breaks before leaving, record start, driving and rest times as they happen, and treat the daily rest as non-negotiable; if running late, stop and rest rather than extend driving time.
At a crash scene, moving an injured motorcyclist or passenger without need, or failing to secure the scene and alert emergency services before assisting.
Candidates panic and act on the impulse to pull people out of vehicles, and they do not know the protect-alert-rescue order or how to check responsiveness and breathing.
What to do instead
Follow protect, alert, rescue: switch on hazard lights, place the warning triangle at a safe distance, call emergency services with location and casualty count, then give only the aid trained for, such as controlling bleeding and keeping the airway open, and never remove a casualty unless there is fire or immediate danger.
Failing the practical manoeuvres: reversing into a loading bay or performing a tight turn without using mirrors correctly, hitting kerbs or overrunning the marked line.
Candidates rely on the interior mirror and direct sight, forget the blind spots of a long vehicle, and rush the manoeuvre without a planned path or a banksman.
What to do instead
Before reversing, stop, set the path, check both mirrors and blind spots, use a banksman where available, and reverse slowly with a spotter signal or by getting out to check; practise the standard bay and turn exercises until mirror use and steering timing are consistent.