Why Air Brake Training for Drivers?

A heavy vehicle’s air brakes are its single most important safety system. Although drivers in most jurisdictions are required to know something about the air brake systems employed on their vehicles, in many cases the required curriculum is woefully inadequate. As a result many commercial vehicle drivers simply do not know enough about their vehicle’s air brakes to recognize when they are functioning properly and when they are not.

The following supports this position:

December 2008 – The American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators
Because no driver training standards exist, many drivers are trained primarily to pass the State knowledge and skills tests. The Task Force believes a gap exists between the testing required by the CDL program and the knowledge and skills needed to safely operate a CMV.

February 2006 – NTSB Acting Chairman Mark V. Rosenker said, “We believe that more than 500,000 vehicles equipped with air brakes may be operated by drivers who have no air brake training and therefore may not be able to operate their vehicles safely. This situation needs to change – and change quickly.”

The Solution

The solution to inadequate driver knowledge regarding air brake systems is obviously education – thorough education as opposed to just enough knowledge to acquire a CDL.  Understanding air brake systems is not difficult, provided that instructors themselves have the knowledge required to properly teach the subject and are equipped with comprehensive and effective teaching resources. Our AIR BRAKE Interactive General Driver Edition teaching resource fits and fills that requirement like no other program available.

GDE Instructor’s Reference and Presentation Guide

The GDE Instructor’s Reference and Presentation Guide is a full color, 12-module, 260-page publication designed to guide the instructor through his or her GDE presentation from beginning to end.  It is also a comprehensive technical reference for instructors, providing presentation tips, suggestions for student exercises and notes regarding specific components and related issues.

The Multimedia Presentation

The GDE multimedia presentation includes 44 voice-narrated air brake component and system animations and 80 additional high quality support visuals. Ultimately, you students will see, hear and remember how an entire modern air brake functions. It’s Visual Learning at it best!

For more information on each module, click on the “v”.

ABI-GDE Content