What Vehicles Can an A1 Driver's License Drive?

[SanNaomi]

The permitted vehicle types for an A1 driver's license include: large buses with more than 20 passengers, and passenger vehicles with a body length exceeding 6 meters must also use an A1 license. Other vehicle types permitted by the A1 license include: A3 (city buses), B1 (medium-sized buses), B2 (large trucks), C1 (small cars), C2 (small automatic transmission cars), C3 (low-speed cargo vehicles), C4 (three-wheeled cars), and M (wheeled self-propelled machinery). According to the appendix of the "Regulations on the Application and Use of Motor Vehicle Driver's Licenses," the classification standards for driver's licenses are: A1, A2, A3, B1, B2, C1, C2, C3, C4, C5, D, E, F, M, N, P, totaling 16 categories. The Ministry of Public Security issued the "Regulations" to further subdivide driver's licenses into 15 categories, with new licenses being replaced during annual inspections or reviews. C1 driver's license: Many people think that a C1 license only allows driving small vehicles with fewer than 7 seats. However, the C1 license permits driving vehicles with up to 9 seats and a body length not exceeding 6 meters, such as Jinbei and Ruifeng models, as long as the seat count does not exceed 9 and the body length is under 6 meters. Other permitted vehicle types for C1 include C2 (small automatic transmission cars), C3 (low-speed cargo vehicles), and C4 (three-wheeled cars). C2 driver's license: The C2 license is also a common one, allowing only the driving of automatic transmission cars with up to 9 seats and a body length not exceeding 6 meters. Note that C2 license holders cannot drive manual transmission vehicles. B1 driver's license: The B1 license permits driving medium-sized buses, defined as vehicles not exceeding 6 meters in length, with a certified passenger capacity of 10 (inclusive) to 19 (inclusive). Other permitted vehicle types include C1 (small cars), C2 (small automatic transmission cars), C3 (low-speed cargo vehicles), C4 (three-wheeled cars), and M (wheeled self-propelled machinery). The B1 license does not include B2. B2 driver's license: The B2 license allows driving heavy and medium-sized trucks or large, heavy, and medium-sized specialized operation vehicles. Heavy and medium-sized trucks are mainly trucks, such as the large trucks commonly seen carrying construction debris. Other permitted vehicle types for B2 include C1 (small cars), C2 (small automatic transmission cars), C3 (low-speed cargo vehicles), C4 (three-wheeled cars), and M (wheeled self-propelled machinery), which is the same as the B1 license. A2 driver's license: The A2 license permits driving tractor-trailers, which can only be driven by holders of an A2 license—even those with an A1 license cannot drive them. Other permitted vehicle types for A2 include B1 (medium-sized buses), B2 (large trucks), C1 (small cars), C2 (small automatic transmission cars), C3 (low-speed cargo vehicles), C4 (three-wheeled cars), and M (wheeled self-propelled machinery). A3 driver's license: The A3 license is somewhat special, as it permits driving city buses, which are commonly used by the public. Other permitted vehicle types include only C1 (small cars), C2 (small automatic transmission cars), C3 (low-speed cargo vehicles), and C4 (three-wheeled cars). This license does not allow driving B1 or B2 vehicle types. Although buses and large passenger vehicles look similar, with some buses even being longer, the A3 license does not permit driving large passenger vehicles. The above 16 categories of driver's license classification standards are based on the driving difficulty and safety requirements of different vehicle types. They further subdivide the existing A (large buses), B (large trucks), and C (small cars) licenses, adding D, E, F, M, N, and P levels. According to the new regulations, first-time applicants for a driver's license cannot apply for an A1 (large bus) license. The permitted vehicle types for first-time applicants include city buses, large trucks, small cars, small automatic transmission cars, low-speed cargo vehicles, three-wheeled cars, ordinary three-wheeled motorcycles, ordinary two-wheeled motorcycles, light motorcycles, wheeled self-propelled machinery, trolleybuses, and trams. For first-time applicants in a temporary residence, only C-series licenses (small cars, small automatic transmission cars, low-speed cargo vehicles, and three-wheeled cars) can be applied for. Motorcycle licenses cannot be applied for. Holders of the newly added D license can drive ordinary three-wheeled motorcycles with an engine displacement exceeding 50ml or a maximum design speed exceeding 50km/h. Holders of the E license can drive ordinary two-wheeled motorcycles with an engine displacement exceeding 50ml or a maximum design speed exceeding 50km/h. Holders of the F license can drive light motorcycles with an engine displacement of 50ml or less and a maximum design speed of 50km/h or less. Holders of the M license can drive wheeled self-propelled machinery. Holders of the N license can drive trolleybuses. Holders of the P license can drive trams.