Commercial driver's guide to operation, safety and licensing

Parking
Always select a safe place to park the
vehicle. Set the parking brake in the
tractor. Do not use the trailer hand valve
to hold a parked unit. Put the transmission
in the lowest forward or reverse gear (if
applicable). If the vehicle has a two-speed
axle, put the axle in low range.
Properly block the wheels using wheel
chocks or square blocks. The minimum
size for the square blocks should be 15
centimetres by 15 centimetres.
Do not expect the transmission to do
the work of securing the vehicle. Always
use the vehicle’s parking brake system and
wheel blocks.
Parking on a hill
The law requires that the wheels of a
parked vehicle be no more than 50
centimetres from the curb. When parked,
the vehicle must be left in low gear or
reverse for a manual transmission or
park for an automatic transmission. Have
the park brake engaged. The following
information applies to vehicles parked
on the right-hand side of the road. For
vehicles parked on the left-hand side of the
road (one-way), turn the front wheels in the
opposite direction.
• For parking downhill, with or without a
curb, the front wheels should always be
turned to the right.
• For parking uphill with a curb, the
front wheels should always be turned
to the left.
• For parking uphill without a curb,
tractor-trailer units with one articulation
point should always have the front
wheels turned to the left.
Note: If there is a curb, allow the vehicle
to roll to the point where the front wheels
are making contact with the curb before
setting the park brake. This helps to
prevent the vehicle from jumping the curb
if the vehicle starts to move.
Reversing
• When reversing a semi-trailer, turn the
steering wheel in the opposite direction
to where you want the trailer to go.
Another method is to place your hand
on the bottom of the steering wheel and
move your hand in the same direction
that you want the trailer to go. The
tractor must follow an S-shape in order
to bring the trailer around smoothly.
• Always reverse the vehicle slowly and
use both the rear view mirrors. Never
forget that there is always a blind spot
directly behind the vehicle that is not
visible in the mirrors.
• Avoid unnecessary reversing by
planning ahead.
• Sound the horn as a safety precaution
before reversing. Repeat at least once
for every vehicle length reversed.
• If possible, ask someone to act as
a guide and establish hand signals
between the driver and the guide. The
guide must be able to see the path
the vehicle is taking. The driver must
be able to see the guide. Stop if you
cannot see the guide.
• Remember that even with a guide,
the driver is still responsible for all
movements of the vehicle.
50 A Commercial Driver’s Guide to Operation, Safety and Licensing