Class 3 Licence

Where a Class 1 is the top commercial class, a Class 3 is the everyday workhorse — and it covers more work than most drivers realize. Dump trucks, fire trucks, lumber flatdecks, storm-drain tankers, refrigerated food trucks, large tow trucks, mobile cranes. Most straight-truck work is local, within a 200–300 km radius of home base — which means you can build a driving career while still sleeping in your own bed at night.

What you can legally drive

A Class 3 covers trucks with more than two axles — dump trucks, tankers, large tow trucks — but not a bus carrying passengers. You can also pull trailers up to 4,600 kg as long as neither the truck nor the trailer has air brakes. Tow cars of any weight. Mobile truck cranes. Plus everything in Class 5.

The learning curve

Most students find the same two things challenging: shifting a manual non-synchro-mesh transmission, and the pre-trip on an air-braked vehicle. Both are real skills, both are learnable, both get easier fast with the right coach. If a manual isn’t your thing, CSTT also offers Class 3 automatic lessons — same licence outcome, different transmission path.

How we teach it

All training is one-on-one with an ICBC-licensed instructor. We start in a controlled environment and progress to city traffic only when your skills are ready for it.

Cost and registration

A deposit secures your spot. Air brake endorsement is a prerequisite — we run that course most weekends if you don’t have it yet. Call 250-655-0432 for current pricing and start dates.