The

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. ...

was one of the first countries to create a

driving licence A driver's license is a legal authorization, or the official document confirming such an authorization, for a specific individual to operate one or more types of motorized vehicles—such as motorcycles, cars, trucks, or buses—on a public ...

. Russia's first licences were issued in 1900 by

Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...

authorities, and Russia joined an international convention in 1909. However, due to relatively small number of cars, the attempts to create a standardised Russian licence were rather sporadic and limited to major urban areas. No comprehensive system of driver licensing was present until 1936, when the

Soviet The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

government organised and standardised traffic and driving regulations, with the state-wide system regulated by specialised police authorities.

Driving on-road vehicles

Since March 2011 there are following categories that require a driving licence: *A: any type of

motorcycle A motorcycle (motorbike, bike, or trike (if three-wheeled)) is a two or three-wheeled motor vehicle steered by a handlebar. Motorcycle design varies greatly to suit a range of different purposes: long-distance travel, commuting, cruising ...

s **A1:

s with engine capacity not more than 125 cm³ and engine power not more than 11 kW *B:

car A car or automobile is a motor vehicle with wheels. Most definitions of ''cars'' say that they run primarily on roads, seat one to eight people, have four wheels, and mainly transport people instead of goods. The year 1886 is regarded as ...

s (automobiles) with permissible maximum weight not more than 3.5tons and number of passenger seats not more than 8 (optionally with trailer with permissible maximum weight not more than 750kg) **B1:

tricycle A tricycle, sometimes abbreviated to trike, is a human-powered (or gasoline or electric motor powered or assisted, or gravity powered) three-wheeled vehicle. Some tricycles, such as cycle rickshaws (for passenger transport) and freight trikes, ...

s and

quadracycle A quadracycle is a four-wheeled human-powered land vehicle. It is also referred to as a quadricycle, quadcycle, pedal car or four-wheeled bicycle amongst other terms. Quadracycles have been in use since 1853 and have grown into several famil ...

s *C:

truck A truck or lorry is a motor vehicle designed to transport cargo, carry specialized payloads, or perform other utilitarian work. Trucks vary greatly in size, power, and configuration, but the vast majority feature body-on-frame construction ...

s (automobiles) with permissible maximum weight over 3.5tons (optionally with trailer with permissible maximum weight not more than 750kg) **C1:

s (automobiles) with permissible maximum weight over 3.5tons but not more than 7.5tons (optionally with trailer with permissible maximum weight not more than 750kg) *D:

bus A bus (contracted from omnibus, with variants multibus, motorbus, autobus, etc.) is a road vehicle that carries significantly more passengers than an average car or van. It is most commonly used in public transport, but is also in use for cha ...

es with number of passenger seats more than 8 (optionally with trailer with permissible maximum weight not more than 750kg) **D1:

es with number of passenger seats more than 8 but not more than 16 (optionally with trailer with permissible maximum weight not more than 750kg) *BE:

s (automobiles) with permissible maximum weight not more than 3.5tons and number of passenger seats not more than 8, coupled to trailer with permissible maximum weight over 750kg but not exceed the unladen mass of the motor vehicle, where the combined permissible maximum weight of the vehicles so coupled does not exceed 3.5tons *CE:

s (automobiles) with permissible maximum weight over 3.5tons, coupled to trailer with permissible maximum weight over 750kg **C1E:

s (automobiles) with permissible maximum weight over 3.5tons but not more than 7.5tons, coupled to trailer with permissible maximum weight over 750kg but not exceed the unladen mass of the motor vehicle, where the combined permissible maximum weight of the vehicles so coupled does not exceed 12tons *DE:

es with number of passenger seats more than 8, coupled to trailer with permissible maximum weight over 750kg, and also all types of

articulated bus An articulated bus, also referred to as a banana bus, bendy bus, tandem bus, vestibule bus, wiggle wagon, stretch bus, or an accordion bus, (either a motor bus or trolleybus) is an articulated vehicle used in public transportation. It is usua ...

es **D1E:

es with number of passenger seats more than 8 but not more than 16, coupled to trailer with permissible maximum weight over 750kg but not exceed the unladen mass of the motor vehicle, where the combined permissible maximum weight of the vehicles so coupled does not exceed 12tons *M:

moped A moped ( ) is a type of small motorcycle, generally having a less stringent licensing requirement than full motorcycles or automobiles. The term used to mean a similar vehicle except with both bicycle pedals and a motorcycle engine. Mopeds typic ...

s (small vehicle with engine capacity not more than 50 cm³ and with maximum design speed not exceeding 50 km per hour) and light

s; this category is assigned automatically if person have any other category open *Tm:

tram A tram (called a streetcar or trolley in North America) is a rail vehicle that travels on tramway tracks on public urban streets; some include segments on segregated right-of-way. The tramlines or networks operated as public transport are ...

s *Tb:

trolleybus A trolleybus (also known as trolley bus, trolley coach, trackless trolley, trackless tramin the 1910s and 1920sJoyce, J.; King, J. S.; and Newman, A. G. (1986). ''British Trolleybus Systems'', pp. 9, 12. London: Ian Allan Publishing. .or troll ...

es The current licence style, introduced in 2011, is a laminated

plastic card A debit card, also known as a check card or bank card is a payment card that can be used in place of cash to make purchases. The term ''#Plastic card, plastic card'' includes the above and as an identity document. These are similar to a credi ...

similar to the

European driving licence The European driving licence is a driving licence issued by the member states of the European Economic Area (EEA); all 27 EU member states and three EFTA member states; Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway, which give shared features the various ...

card in dimensions and outward appearance, with the bearer's photo and name (in Latin and Cyrillic scripts), place/date of issue, allowed categories, and signature. The reverse of the card features a detailed list of allowed categories. This new style is fully compliant with the

Vienna Convention on Road Traffic The Convention on Road Traffic, commonly known as the Vienna Convention on Road Traffic, is an international treaty designed to facilitate international road traffic and to increase road safety by establishing standard traffic rules among the co ...

, and therefore is acceptable in all its signatory states and countries. Older credit-card-style and booklet-style licenses are also occasionally seen although they are no longer issued and are increasingly rare as a result. The Russian driving licence is also sometimes supplemented by a special card called "временное разрешение" (temporary permission), which serves for registering offense points and as a temporary licence if the primary licence has been seized by the authorities for serious traffic offences. This supplement has been abolished and reinstated a countless number of times as the views of the traffic police change. The legal driving age within the Russian Federation is 18 years (16 for motorcycles and 20 for buses) and to obtain a licence one must be physically fit to drive (including certificates of mental fitness and no record of

substance abuse Substance abuse, also known as drug abuse, is the use of a drug in amounts or by methods which are harmful to the individual or others. It is a form of substance-related disorder. Differing definitions of drug abuse are used in public health, ...

). One must also pass a test administered at a local traffic police authority and pay a fee. Tests are divided into theory and practice. The theory test is usually a computerized multiple-choice test on various

traffic rules Traffic comprises pedestrians, vehicles, ridden or herded animals, trains, and other conveyances that use public ways (roads) for travel and transportation. Traffic laws govern and regulate traffic, while rules of the road include traffic ...

. Twenty multiple-choice questions are asked, only one incorrect answer allowed in two different test topics (for a total of two incorrect answers) for a passing grade, after the main part of the test is finished, five additional questions are added for every incorrect answer, bringing a total maximum of questions to 30. Practice part of the test is divided into two parts: basic skills test conducted in an isolated area (steering, slope starting, backing-up, parallel parking and an obstacle course) and a road test conducted on public roads. Four minor errors are allowed for the road driving examination. The number of retries is virtually unlimited, but there is a mandatory grace period of one week for the first three tries and a month for any subsequent ones. Driver's licences are issued by subdivisions of the

General Administration for Traffic Safety The Main Directorate for Traffic Safety of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia (, IBDD or GUOBDD, popularly known under its historical abbreviation GAI (ГАИ), is a federal law enforcement agency of Russia specializing in traffic poli ...

of the

Ministry of Internal Affairs An interior ministry (sometimes called a ministry of internal affairs or ministry of home affairs) is a government department that is responsible for internal affairs. Lists of current ministries of internal affairs Named "ministry" * Ministry ...

and grant the right to drive on-road vehicles only.

Driving off-road vehicles

The right to drive off-road vehicles is granted by tractorist-machinist's licens

which is issued by state inspections of the supervision of the technical condition of self-propelled machines and other machiner

(these state inspections are parts of the regional governments of

federal subjects of Russia The federal subjects of Russia, also referred to as the subjects of the Russian Federation (russian: субъекты Российской Федерации, subyekty Rossiyskoy Federatsii) or simply as the subjects of the federation (russian ...

and may have different names). The

Ministry of Agriculture An agriculture ministry (also called an) agriculture department, agriculture board, agriculture council, or agriculture agency, or ministry of rural development) is a ministry charged with agriculture. The ministry is often headed by a minister f ...

approves the form of the license and the procedure for issuing it. There are the following categories in tractorist-machinist's license: *AI:

quad bikes An all-terrain vehicle (ATV), also known as a light utility vehicle (LUV), a quad bike, or simply a quad, as defined by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI); is a vehicle that travels on low-pressure tires, with a seat that is stra ...

snowmobile A snowmobile, also known as a Ski-Doo, snowmachine, sled, motor sled, motor sledge, skimobile, or snow scooter, is a motorized vehicle designed for winter travel and recreation on snow. It is designed to be operated on snow and ice and does not ...

s and other

off-road vehicle An off-road vehicle, sometimes referred to as an overland or adventure vehicle, is considered to be any type of vehicle which is capable of driving on and off paved or gravel surface. It is generally characterized by having large tires with dee ...

s with steering that is similar to

's steering *AII: wheeled cross-country vehicles weighing less than 3.5tons, including

amphibious Amphibious means able to use either land or water. In particular it may refer to: Animals * Amphibian, a vertebrate animal of the class Amphibia (many of which live on land and breed in water) * Amphibious caterpillar * Amphibious fish, a fish ...

snow-and-swamp vehicles (

TREKOL-39294 The TREKOL-39294 is a Russian six-wheeled amphibious all-terrain vehicle produced by TREKOL. The 39294 is available in two versions: passenger and freight and it uses large low-pressure tires. TREKOL manufactures the 39294 using UAZ and GAZ part ...

, VIKING-29031, etc.), *AIII:

haul truck Haul trucks are off-highway, rigid dump trucks specifically engineered for use in high-production mining and heavy-duty construction environments. Haul trucks are also used for transporting construction equipment from job site to job site. Some ar ...

s *AIV: off-road

es *B: wheeled and caterpillar

tractor A tractor is an engineering vehicle specifically designed to deliver a high tractive effort (or torque) at slow speeds, for the purposes of hauling a trailer or machinery such as that used in agriculture, mining or construction. Most common ...

s with engine power less than 25,7 kW *C: wheeled

s with engine power from 25,7 kW to 110,3 kW *D: wheeled

s with engine power over 110,3 kW *E: caterpillar

s with engine power over 25,7 kW *F: self-propelled

agricultural machinery Agricultural machinery relates to the mechanical structures and devices used in farming or other agriculture. There are many types of such equipment, from hand tools and power tools to tractors and the countless kinds of farm implements that the ...

To obtain the tractorist-machinist's license with AII category applicant must have at least 1-year driving experience by category B of driver's license, AIII category – category C of driver's license, AIV category – category D of driver's license. For getting the tractorist-machinist's license applicant has to pass theoretical and practice exam on the program approved by the

. If applicant doesn't have the driver's license he also has to pass theoretical exam on the program approved by the

of the

(knowledge of

References

External links

{{commonscat, Driver's licenses of Russia

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

Road transport in Russia