Commercial Road Transport: Compliance, Loads and Driver Duties
Domain 2 - Commercial road transport. This section tests the operational and legal side of moving freight: driver licence classes, work time and logbooks, load restraint, mass and dimension limits, road user charges, certificates of fitness and pre-trip inspection. Questions often describe a planned trip or load and ask whether it is legal, what document is missing, or which limit is breached.
Licensing and documents
- New Zealand heavy licence classes progress from Class 2 (rigid up to 18,000 kg GLW and lighter combinations) through Class 3 (combinations up to 25,000 kg GCW), Class 4 (heavy rigid over 18,000 kg) and Class 5 (combinations over 25,000 kg GCW).
- A transport service licence, road user charges and a certificate of fitness are separate requirements. A CoF proves vehicle fitness; it is not an RUC licence or a freight authorisation.
- Overweight, overdimension and high-productivity motor vehicle operations need the correct permit and must comply with its conditions.
Work time, fatigue and logbooks
- Keep within the work-time limits: no more than 13 hours’ work in a 24-hour period and at least 10 hours’ continuous rest in that period, plus the weekly cap.
- Logbook entries must be current, accurate and available for inspection. Rest breaks are not optional paperwork.
Loads, mass and dimensions
- Check gross mass, axle and axle-group limits, tyre ratings and bridge limits. Legal gross mass does not prove each axle is legal.
- Use rated lashings and load restraint equipment; distribute the load to avoid axle overload and instability. Mark overhangs and keep lights and plates visible.
Worked example
A Class 5 driver plans a 44,000 kg GVM tractor-semitrailer. Tare is 13,000 kg and payload 30,000 kg, giving 43,000 kg gross - legal on gross mass. But the drive axle is 19,500 kg against an 18,000 kg limit. Reasoning: total mass alone does not prove compliance. The load must be redistributed, payload reduced, or a permit obtained if eligible; RUC and CoF still need checking.
Traps that cost marks
Checking only gross weight; assuming a CoF covers RUC; rounding logbook times; accepting “it hasn’t moved” as load restraint; using the wrong licence class for a combination; and ignoring permit conditions.