Truck and trailer rules in New York: licence classes, trailer brakes and size limits

This page reports what the official source says. It is not legal advice: ask the office named here. The sources are Vehicle and Traffic Law sections 375, 385, 501 and 501-a as printed on the New York State Senate's legislation site, and two New York DMV pages, all read on October 10, 2026. Section 385 applies in any county not wholly inside a city; New York City has its own Department of Transportation rules under section 1642. Federal background and the other places are on the parent page, trucks and trailers for tree work.

At a glance

Item	What the sources say
Commercial motor vehicle	Rated over 26,000 pounds, or a combination over 26,000 pounds with a towed unit rated over 10,000 pounds (section 501-a)
Class D	Vehicles rated 26,000 pounds or less; may tow up to 10,000 pounds rated, or more if the combination is 26,000 pounds or less
Trailer brakes	Adequate brakes on any trailer over 1,000 pounds unladen, and on those made from January 1, 1971 rated over 3,000 pounds
Width, height	96 inches wide, or 102 inches on listed highways; 13 feet 6 inches high
Length	40 feet single vehicle; 48 feet trailer; 65 feet combination, with exemptions
Weight	22,400 pounds on one axle; 80,000 pounds for three or more axles
Towing	No more than one other vehicle, with listed exceptions

Licence classes

Section 501 sets the classes. Class A covers any motor vehicle or combination of vehicles. Class B covers anything a class E licence covers, plus any motor vehicle other than a tractor towing a vehicle with a gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) of 10,000 pounds or less. Class C covers a motor vehicle with a GVWR of 26,000 pounds or less and such a vehicle towing another rated 10,000 pounds or less, but is not valid for a tractor. Class D covers a passenger or limited use automobile or a truck with a GVWR of 26,000 pounds or less, towing a vehicle rated 10,000 pounds or less, or one rated more if the combination's rating is 26,000 pounds or less. Class D is not valid for a tractor, a vehicle carrying passengers for hire, a vehicle needing a hazardous materials endorsement, or a bus. Endorsements include T for double and triple trailers, H for placarded hazardous materials and W for tow trucks. The section lets the Commissioner restrict a licence to vehicles without air brakes, to truck-trailer combinations, or to a stated GVWR.

Section 501-a defines a commercial motor vehicle as one designed or used to carry passengers or property that has a GVWR over 26,000 pounds, or a combination rating over 26,000 pounds including a towed unit rated over 10,000 pounds, or is designed for 15 or more passengers besides the driver, or is a bus, or carries placarded hazardous materials. A commercial driver's licence is a class A or B licence, or a class C licence with an H, P or X endorsement. The DMV class descriptions page words the classes by rating instead. It lists class A as a combination rating of more than 26,000 pounds with a towed unit rated more than 10,000 pounds, age 21 or older, and class B as a GVWR of more than 26,000 pounds, age 18 or older. For ages 18 to 20 it adds no interstate commerce, no hazardous materials and no school bus. The DMV commercial driver licence page says first-time applicants must complete entry-level driver training before a CDL road test.

Trailer brakes and towing

Section 375, subdivision 1(c), requires adequate brakes in good working order on every trailer and semitrailer weighing more than 1,000 pounds unladen. It also covers every trailer or semitrailer made or assembled on or after January 1, 1971 whose registered or actual gross weight, or unladen weight plus the maker's recommended carrying capacity, is over 3,000 pounds. A trailer must be attached so its wheels cannot deflect more than 6 inches from the towing vehicle's path, and the Commissioner sets brake efficiency standards by rule. Subdivision 29 says no vehicle may tow more than one other vehicle, with exceptions that include a tractor towing a semitrailer and trailer outside New York City and Nassau and Suffolk counties, or on qualifying or access highways inside them, and B-train double semitrailer combinations under the same geography. A rope or other non-rigid connection used for towing may not be longer than 16 feet. Subdivision 29-a requires safety chains or cables on a dolly tow so the towed vehicle cannot separate from the towing vehicle. Every truck with a maximum gross weight over 12,000 pounds and every tractor and trailer combination must carry emergency warning lighting, which section 375 subdivision 17 describes.

Size and weight

Limit	Figure as printed in section 385	Subdivision
Width	96 inches plus safety devices; 102 inches on qualifying or access highways and, outside New York City, on other highways with lanes 10 feet or wider	1(a)
Height	13 feet 6 inches including load	2
Single vehicle length	40 feet including load and bumpers	3(a)
Trailer or semitrailer length	48 feet; 28 feet 6 inches in a combination with another trailer	3(b)
Combination length	65 feet including load and bumpers, with exemptions	4(a)
Weight on one wheel	11,200 pounds	7
Weight on one axle	22,400 pounds	8
Two consecutive axles under 8 feet apart	36,000 pounds	9
Three or more axles	34,000 pounds plus 1,000 pounds a foot, and in no case more than 80,000 pounds	10

Section 385 3(g) lets a specialized material delivery vehicle, a single-unit truck with a boom or forklift for hoisting, swinging, loading or unloading, leave up to 5 feet of boom or forklift beyond the rear bumper out of its 40 foot length, but only if the operator holds a valid commercial driver's licence under section 501-a. Subdivision 4(b) exempts from the 65 foot combination limit vehicles hauling poles, girders or similar long objects that meet the overlength safety rules, and utility and regulated carriers' maintenance vehicles. The wheel limit is also 800 pounds per inch of tire width. Subdivision 14 bars a vehicle from crossing a bridge whose posted capacity or clearance it exceeds, and subdivision 15 lets the Commissioner of Transportation issue permits, for a fee, for loads over these limits on state highways, not valid inside New York City.