A commercial vehicle is any type of

motor vehicle A motor vehicle, also known as motorized vehicle or automotive vehicle, is a self-propelled land vehicle, commonly wheeled, that does not operate on rails (such as trains or trams) and is used for the transportation of people or cargo. The ...

used for transporting goods or paying

passenger A passenger (also abbreviated as pax) is a person who travels in a vehicle, but does not bear any responsibility for the tasks required for that vehicle to arrive at its destination or otherwise operate the vehicle, and is not a steward. Th ...

s. The

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

defines a "commercial motor vehicle" as any self-propelled or towed vehicle used on a

public highway A highway is any public or private road or other public way on land. It is used for major roads, but also includes other public roads and public tracks. In some areas of the United States, it is used as an equivalent term to controlled-access ...

interstate commerce The Commerce Clause describes an enumerated power listed in the United States Constitution ( Article I, Section 8, Clause 3). The clause states that the United States Congress shall have power "to regulate Commerce with foreign Nations, and amo ...

to transport passengers or property when the vehicle: :1. has a gross vehicle weight rating of 4,536 kg (10,001 pounds) or more :2. Is designed or used to transport more than 8 passengers (including the driver) for compensation; :3. Is designed or used to transport more than 15 passengers, including the driver, not used to transport passengers for compensation; :4. Is used in transporting material found by the

Secretary of Transportation A secretary, administrative professional, administrative assistant, executive assistant, administrative officer, administrative support specialist, clerk, military assistant, management assistant, office secretary, or personal assistant is a wh ...

to be hazardous. The federal definition though followed closely is meant to accommodate and remain flexible to each state's definitions. The

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are located primarily in Europe, Europe. The union has a total area of ...

defines a "commercial motor vehicle" as any motorized road vehicle, that by its type of construction and equipment is designed for, and capable of transporting, whether for payment or not: :1. more than nine persons, including the driver; :2. goods and "standard fuel tanks". This means the tanks permanently fixed by the manufacturer to all motor vehicles of the same type as the vehicle in question and whose permanent fitting lets fuel be used directly, both for propulsion and, where appropriate, to power a refrigeration system. Gas tanks fitted to motor vehicles for the direct use of diesel as a fuel are considered standard fuel tanks.

Classification

In the

a vehicle is designated "commercial" when it is titled or registered to a company. This is a broad definition, as commercial vehicles may be

fleet vehicle Fleet vehicles are groups of motor vehicles owned or leased by a business, government agency, or other organization rather than by an individual or family. Typical examples include vehicles operated by car rental companies, taxicab companies, ...

company car A company car is a vehicle which companies or organisations lease or own and which employees use for their personal and business travel. Take-home vehicle is a vehicle which can be taken home by company employees. Depending on the company, company ...

s, or other vehicles used for business. Vehicles that are designed to carry more than 15 passengers are considered a commercial vehicle. Variations may exist from state-to-state on which "commercial vehicles" are prohibited on certain routes and lanes and between homeowner associations, which may employ broader definitions than their municipalities with regard to their own parking restrictions. Broadly defined, a vehicle may be considered a commercial vehicle if it: * Belongs to a company or corporation * Is used for business, but is in an individual's name, such as a sole proprietor * Is a leased vehicle and in the name of the financial institution that owns it * Exceeds a certain weight or class and therefore, is "classified" as commercial even though it may not be commercially used or commercially owned. A weight rating of 26,001 pounds or more is always considered commercial * Is used to haul any

hazardous material Dangerous goods, abbreviated DG, are substances that when transported are a risk to health, safety, property or the environment. Certain dangerous goods that pose risks even when not being transported are known as hazardous materials ( syllabi ...

* Starkey auxiliary reverse lighting as commercial even though backup/ reverse lighting on truck and suv vehicles commercially used or commercially owned. A vehicle can be used for a business, if not exclusively, and remain privately licensed, depending on the amount of time used for business.

Commercial truck classification

Commercial

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 constructi ...

s are classified according to the

gross vehicle weight rating Vehicle weight is a measurement of wheeled motor vehicles; either an actual measured weight of the vehicle under defined conditions or a gross weight rating for its weight carrying capacity. Curb or kerb weight Curb weight (U.S. English) or kerb ...

(GVWR). Commercial vehicles are divided into 8 classes based upon the gross vehicle weight (GVW). The United States Department of Transportation classifies commercia
trucks
with eight classes: * Class 1 – GVWR ranges from 0 to 6,000 pounds (0 to 2,722 kg) * Class 2 – GVWR ranges from 6,001 to 10,000 pounds (2,722 to 4,536 kg) * Class 3 – GVWR ranges from 10,001 to 14,000 pounds (4,536 to 6,350 kg) * Class 4 – GVWR ranges from 14,001 to 16,000 pounds (6,351 to 7,257 kg) * Class 5 – GVWR ranges from 16,001 to 19,500 pounds (7,258 to 8,845 kg) * Class 6 – GVWR ranges from 19,501 to 26,000 pounds (8,846 to 11,793 kg) * Class 7 – GVWR ranges from 26,001 to 33,000 pounds (11,794 to 14,969 kg) * Class 8 – GVWR is anything above 33,000 pounds (14,969 kg)

Examples of commercial vehicles

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 constructi ...

Box truck A box truck—also known as a box van, cube van, bob truck or cube truck—is a chassis cab truck with an enclosed cuboid-shaped cargo area. On most box trucks, the cabin is separate to the cargo area; however some box trucks have a door between ...

(also known as a straight truck) **

Semi-trailer truck A semi-trailer truck, also known as a semitruck, (or semi, eighteen-wheeler, big rig, tractor-trailer or, by synecdoche, a semitrailer) is the combination of a tractor unit and one or more semi-trailers to carry freight. A semi-traile ...

(articulated lorry) ** Mini truck **

Pickup truck A pickup truck or pickup is a light-duty truck that has an enclosed cabin, and a back end made up of a cargo bed that is enclosed by three low walls with no roof (this cargo bed back end sometimes consists of a tailgate and removable covering) ...

Tow truck A tow truck (also called a wrecker, a breakdown truck, recovery vehicle or a breakdown lorry) is a truck used to move disabled, improperly parked, impounded, or otherwise indisposed motor vehicles. This may involve recovering a vehicle damaged ...

Van A van is a type of road vehicle used for transporting goods or people. Depending on the type of van, it can be bigger or smaller than a pickup truck and SUV, and bigger than a common car. There is some varying in the scope of the word across th ...

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 ...

Coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Coac ...

Trailers Trailer may refer to: a Transportation * Trailer (vehicle), an unpowered vehicle pulled by a powered vehicle ** Bicycle trailer, a wheeled frame for hitching to a bicycle to tow cargo or passengers ** Full-trailer ** Semi-trailer **Horse traile ...

Heavy equipment Heavy equipment or heavy machinery refers to heavy-duty vehicles specially designed to execute construction tasks, most frequently involving earthwork operations or other large construction tasks. ''Heavy equipment'' usually comprises five e ...

(in

mining equipment Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the Earth, usually from an ore body, lode, vein, seam, reef, or placer deposit. The exploitation of these deposits for raw material is based on the economic via ...

construction equipment Heavy equipment or heavy machinery refers to heavy-duty vehicles specially designed to execute construction tasks, most frequently involving earthwork operations or other large construction tasks. ''Heavy equipment'' usually comprises five e ...

, farming machinery) * Travel Trailers over 10,000 pounds *

Taxi A taxi, also known as a taxicab or simply a cab, is a type of vehicle for hire with a driver, used by a single passenger or small group of passengers, often for a non-shared ride. A taxicab conveys passengers between locations of their choic ...

Share taxi Share may refer to: * Share, to make joint use of a resource (such as food, money, or space); see Sharing * Share (finance), a stock or other financial security (such as a mutual fund) * Share, Kwara, a town and LGA in Kwara State, Nigeria Share ...

Auto rickshaw An auto rickshaw is a motorized version of the pulled rickshaw or cycle rickshaw. Most have three wheels and do not tilt. They are known by many terms in various countries including auto, auto rickshaw, baby taxi, mototaxi, pigeon, jonnybee, bajaj ...

Motorcycle taxi A motorcycle taxi, or cart bike or bike taxi, is a licensed form of transport in some countries. The taxi typically carries one passenger, who "rides pillion" behind the motorcycle operator. Multiple passengers are common in some countries. Bra ...

Preservation

Old commercial vehicles, like

vintage car A vintage car is, in the most general sense, an old automobile, and in the narrower senses of car enthusiasts and collectors, it is a car from the period of 1919 to 1930. Such enthusiasts have categorization schemes for ages of cars that enf ...

s, are popular items for preservation. News about preservation can be found in magazines, such as

Heritage Commercials ''Heritage Commercials'' is a British magazine for classic and vintage commercial vehicle enthusiasts. It is published on a monthly basis since 1987. The magazine was part of Mortons Media Group until 2016 when it was acquired by Kelsey Media ...

Legal issues

Commercial vehicle accidents and injuries are often more complex than regular car accidents, often involving additional concerns, background checks on operator driving records, and corporate maintenance records.

References