CDL · Pulling Doubles and Triples

How should the trailers be arranged when pulling doubles or triples of different weights?

Correct answer

The heaviest trailer should be directly behind the tractor and the lightest trailer at the rear, so the trailers are loaded in decreasing order of weight from front to back

  1. A Heaviest trailer last, lightest first
  2. B The heaviest trailer should be directly behind the tractor and the lightest trailer at the rear, so the trailers are loaded in decreasing order of weight from front to back
  3. C Trailer order does not matter
  4. D Lightest trailer always in the middle

Why this is the answer

When the trailers carry different loads, they should be arranged with the heaviest closest to the tractor and the lightest at the very back, decreasing in weight from front to rear. This improves stability and handling: a heavy trailer at the rear amplifies the crack-the-whip effect and is far more likely to roll or swing dangerously. Putting the lighter trailer last reduces the violence of rearward amplification. The driver must follow legal weight and coupling rules, but within those, sequencing the trailers by weight from heavy in front to light in back is the safe practice.
Source: FMCSA CDL Manual 7.1.2 Trailer Order

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