Everything You Need to Know About HR Driving Courses
HR driving courses are offered to help you gain theoretical and practical knowledge, skills and experience required to operate heavy vehicles. Once you complete an HR driving course, you are expected to pass an exam set by your state's department of transport and main road. The exam is known as a driving test, and it is divided into two sections: a theoretical and practical section.
Passing the exam shows that you have understood what you were taught and can safely operate a heavy rigid vehicle. After passing the driving test, you are issued with an HR driving license.
Defining an HR Driving License
An HR driving license is a document that is used as proof that you have completed an HR driving course and have passed an HR driving test. It allows you to operate vehicles that have a gross vehicle mass (GVM) of eight tonnes that also has three or more axles. You can also operate a heavy rigid vehicle that is towing a trailer that does not exceed a GVM of nine tonnes.
GVM (gross vehicle mass) is the weight of a vehicle when it is loaded, that is the weight of the empty vehicle plus its luggage or passengers.
How Do You Apply for an HR Driving Course?
Look for institutions that offer HR driving courses in your locality. Visit them or contact them to find out what you are required to do.
You might be required to have held a class C driving license for at least two years to be allowed to apply for an HR driving course. This is the license that allows you to drive a standard vehicle; the vehicle used to get you to work or the store. If you have also held a light rigid (LR) or medium rigid (MR) license for one year, you are allowed to enrol in an HR driving course.
You are also medically assessed to find out whether you have any health condition that could prevent you from safely operating a heavy rigid vehicle. Examples of these conditions include eyesight problems, limb disabilities, conditions that cause loss of consciousness, hearing problems, etc.
What Type of Work Can You Do With an HR License?
You can become a bus driver and even drive those long bendy buses. You can also operate heavy rigid vehicles used by transport and logistics companies to transport cargo for long distances.
Sometimes, these jobs may require you to acquire other skills, such as the operation of off-loading vehicles or machines or even the operation of refrigeration trucks; this depends on the nature of the job.