Receiving a commercial driver’s license or CDL requires that you complete more advanced testing than a regular driver’s license, as it is an indicator that you are a skilled and responsible driver who can be trusted with driving a vehicle that carries passengers or valuable cargo. As such, the penalties for even a speeding infraction can be much more severe than those for speeding in a normal passenger vehicle.
Being caught speeding more than once in a commercial motor vehicle (CMV) can cause you to have your CDL temporarily disqualified. However, the short answer to the question as to whether speeding will have this effect is: Not necessarily.
When speeding does not disqualify your CDL
Getting one speeding ticket does not disqualify your CDL, but getting more than one does, with the time period of disqualification increasing for each subsequent offense thereafter. An important clause of federal law as pointed out by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration to keep in mind is that the disqualification for speeding is dependent on whether you were actually driving a CMV or not.
If, for example, you have one speeding ticket that you received driving a CMV, and then receive another speeding ticket while driving your normal passenger vehicle, the ticket you received when driving your passenger vehicle will not count towards your disqualification. You will only be disqualified for multiple instances of speeding when you are caught speeding in a CMV.
This article is meant to inform you about CDL regulations regarding speeding tickets and is not intended as legal advice.
